Star Trekkies II: Yel'Haltor
by Ael L. Bolt
Summary: 15 years after Star Trekkies 1, the seven Trekkies find themselves in space once more. But when they run into the abductors again, they get more than they bargained for... [121504: It is finished]
1. Status Report

STAR TREKKIES  
  
By Lugia42/Charmega  
  
  
Book Two: Yel'Hal-tor  
  
  
Author's Notes: It's finally here! *gets tackled by 13 overenthusiastic Trekkies* Owie...anyway, chapter two will be up soon. Don't worry, you seven new Trekkies, you'll show up quite soon. Just be patient. Let the katra flooow....OMMMMM....  
  
  
  
  
Prologue  
"Personal Log, Stardate...oh, to hell with these stardates! Why I even bother..."  
  
"Get on with it already, Ael!"  
  
"Ahem. As I was saying...  
  
It's been years since we entered this century. We're all pretty much used to it now. This recording begins fifteen years after our journey from 2001..."  
  
  
Chapter One - Status Report  
A Vulcan woman with commander's stripes walked down the hallway at StarFleet HQ. Just back from a long mission on the U.S.S. Excalibur, she was reporting to Admiral Davis for debriefing.  
  
Stepping into his office, she took a seat across from the large desk as the doors swooshed quietly shut behind her.  
  
"You wanted to see me, sir?"  
  
"Welcome back to Earth, Commander Danks. I trust your mission was successful?"  
  
"Completely, Admiral."  
  
"Very good." Admiral Davis smiled knowingly. "I think it's about time we got rid of that rank of yours."  
  
The Vulcan woman was taken off guard. "Sir?"  
  
The admiral reached under his desk and pulled out a brand-new style of uniform: red cloth, white flap on the front...  
  
And with Captain's insignia.  
  
Her voice was hushed as she touched the uniform. "This...is this...mine?"  
  
"Of course it is, Captain Danks."  
  
"Thank you, sir!" She could hardly stop staring at the gold braids. Captain!  
  
"There's more, Captain. I'd like you to take command of the U.S.S. Yel'Hal-tor, our newest starship. I hear she's based somewhat off of some ideas of yours. And of course you'll want to handpick your main staff..."  
  
"Yes, sir! Thank you, sir!"  
  
"Enough with the 'sir's. Go get your crew."  
  
The side of her mouth quirked up into a smile. "Yes, sir!" she said purposefully as she stood up, and as the doors slid shut behind her she heard the admiral break out laughing.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
A young Klingon woman muttered to herself as she plunked down in a chair. What a boring day! Nothing but patrol and drill, patrol and drill...being a Security officer was really useless when there were no security leaks or intruders. Not even an alarm...  
  
At that very moment, her comm unit whistled. Irritated, she got to her feet and pressed a button. "Yes?"  
  
"You aren't busy at the moment, are you?" a familiar voice asked.  
  
"Not really. Why?"  
  
"Well, I just got promoted and put in charge of a starship, so I figured you might want to tag along..."  
  
"Ael, don't you DARE leave Spacedock without me!"  
  
A laugh came from the comm speaker. "I wouldn't dream of it! Be at Docking Ring 81 at 0945 tomorrow morning."  
  
"I'll be there," she promised.  
  
"Remember, Jess. If you're late, I WILL leave without you."  
  
Jessie snorted, unamused. "Whatever. Seeya tomorrow."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The other time-travelers got pretty much the same message. At 0945 the next day, all of them met at Docking Ring 81. Allison was nowhere to be seen. Until...  
  
"Alright peoples, let's get crackin'!"  
  
The tall Vulcan captain appeared practically out of nowhere and grinned at the six friends. "Shall we go on, ladies and gentlemen?" She gestured towards the inspection pod that was docked at that specific station.  
  
All of them looked at each other and followed her into the pod. Allison gestured towards the pilot's seat. "May, would you care to do the honors?"  
  
"Sure!" May agreed cheerfully and slid into the seat. "Everybody got your seatbelts buckled?"  
  
Chuckles echoed through the pod. "Can we just go already?" Steve asked.  
  
"Oh, fine. May, take us out," Allison ordered.  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
The pod launched without a hitch, and it turned towards the floating shipyard where the refit or newly-built ships would be. Allison told May where to fly, and she complied quickly and easily. One specific port caught their attention, as Allison knew it would. All they could see was endless silver-white metal behind the black support struts.  
  
And then the pod moved around to the end, and it seemed as though time itself had stopped.  
  
The ship was beautiful. It had a flat saucer for the main section, with the gracefully curving engineering section below. The warp nacelles were folded down level with the lower section, and all of the ship seemed to be encased in smooth, gracefully flowing silver. The familiar StarFleet insignia was emblazoned on the side, and Allison directed May to fly the pod over the bridge. As they did so, all of them looked down at the name that was so proudly displayed on the ship's hull.  
  
NCC-2001. The U.S.S. Yel'Hal-tor.  
  
"What does it mean?" Lia asked curiously, in awe of the mighty starship.  
  
Allison made a grand dramatic gesture. "My friends, welcome to your new home: the U.S.S. Star Trek." 


	2. Getting Started

Disclaimer: Star Trek ain't mine. (I forgot to add this to the first chapter. ^_^;;; Oh well. It applies for all of this.)  
  
  
Chapter Two - Getting Started  
  
The ship was almost as beautiful on the inside as it was on the outside. Everything was new, and it smelled like it, too. Light, powder-gray walls, brilliant lights, and perfectly programmed computers. The turbolifts worked smoother than the ones on the old Enterprise ever did.  
  
The seven time-travelers rode the aforementioned turbolift up onto the bridge. No one else was up there, except a few ensigns. When they saw who it was, they immediately leaped out of their seats and stood at attention.  
  
Allison waved a hand. "At ease."  
  
The ensigns glanced at each other and slowly relaxed. One stepped forward. "Welcome aboard, sir."  
  
"Thank you, Ensign Felsinger," she acknowledged. Then she smiled, and continued. "Ensign, despite Starfleet protocol, I don't like being addressed as 'sir'."  
  
"I'm sorry, ma'am."  
  
"Ma'am will do in a crunch, but I prefer 'Captain'." There were quite a few chuckles as the other time-travelers recognized the exchange.  
  
Allison turned to her friends. "Well, shall we take our stations?"  
  
Lia and May both looked at the helm/nav console with excited looks on their faces, and the two Lieutenant-Commanders took their places: Lia as Navigator, May as Helmswoman. Kristian took his place on the right side of the bridge, at the Science station. Jessie stood next to the newly-added Security console, where she could keep track of almost anything on the entire ship. Michael gave everyone a look, then stepped back in the turbolift to pay a visit to Engineering, where he belonged. Steve looked confused as to what he should do, until Allison smiled and said, "Just pretend you're McCoy." He grinned in sudden understanding and stood next to the captain's chair.  
  
Allison approached the chair slowly, studying it thoroughly. It was primarily silver, with thick black padding and a headrest. The armrests could fold down, and they were adorned with buttons and switches of various types. She grinned and sat down, marveling at the comfort the seat allowed.  
  
"Crew report," Allison called out to whoever. One of the ensigns scrambled to give her the answer.  
  
"Transporter room reports that the last crewpersons are beaming aboard now," he said.  
  
Allison nodded and examined the right-hand panel on her chair. Finding the button she wanted, she pushed it. "Engineering."  
  
"Lieutenant-Commander Michael here."  
  
"How'd your engines check out?"  
  
"They're perfect, Captain. Just give the word and we'll be ready to leave."  
  
"Thank you, Michael. Captain out." She hit the button again, closing the channel. She turned to the ensign at the Communication's station, who happened to be Felsinger. "Open a channel to Spacedock Control." He hurriedly opened it and sent it up to the comm in her chair. "Spacedock, Yel'Hal-tor requests permission to get underway."  
  
"Spacedock Control acknowledges, Yel'Hal-tor. Permission granted."  
  
"Many thanks, Spacedock Control." She had Felsinger close the channel, and then leaned forward. "Release docking clamps."  
  
"Docking clamps released."  
  
Allison had a michevious glint in her eyes and a smile tugging at her lips. "One-quarter impulse power."  
  
The ensigns looked at her, startled, and one of them started to remind her about the regulation that stated only maneuvering thrusters were to be used in Spacedock, but a glare from Jessie and a giggle from the captain effectively silenced him. Confused, he turned back to his station.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Back in Spacedock Control, Admiral Fitzpatrick watched the brand-new ship leap out of Spacedock at a speed they should not have been using. He growled, and clenched his fists to his sides.  
  
"She's a Kirk, all right."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
"You had to do it, didn't you?" Jessie asked as she walked over to stand behind Allison's chair.  
  
Allison smiled an innocent smile. "Who, me?"  
  
The Klingon Lieutenant-Commander snorted. "Just because you're related to the guy doesn't mean you have to ACT like him."  
  
"Says who?"  
  
Jessie sighed and went back to her station.  
  
Lia swiveled around in her chair. "So, Captain, where to?"  
  
Allison considered that. "Let's take the Scenic Tour." The Scenic Tour was common for maiden voyages of starships. It was a flight path that took the ship past all the outer planets of the Sol system before finally clearing the orbit of Pluto.  
  
"Laying in course for the Scenic Tour, aye," Lia said.  
  
"Bring speed up to full."  
  
"Full impulse power, Captain," May acknowledged.  
  
Allison grinned. "My momma would be so proud," she remarked dryly to Steve, and he laughed. "Look ma, no hands!"  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Steve eventually left to check out his Sickbay (being the Chief Medical Officer, it was his duty, after all). The ride was going smoothly, nothing had gone wrong, and everyone was happy.  
  
Only a few hours into the trip, the ensign at the Communications console straightened and turned around. "Captain? I'm recieving a priority one signal, addressed to you."  
  
Allison swiveled around in her chair, a frown already forming on her face. "Origin of signal?"  
  
Felsinger tapped a few keys and then turned around again. "It's coming from the Enterprise."  
  
Allison sighed loudly. "Never catch a break, do they? Put it up on the main viewscreen."  
  
The viewscreen made a beeping noise, and suddenly Kirk was on the screen. Allison stood up respectfully. "Greetings, Admiral," she said, her face Vulcan-calm.  
  
"Likewise, Captain," he said, glancing at her rank insignia. "I wish I could contact you under less stressful circumstances..."  
  
"What's wrong, Jim?"  
  
"Khan."  
  
All the time-travelers on the bridge froze and did a mental calculation. Sure enough, it was time for Khan to show up.  
  
"Damn," Allison swore. "Do you need assistance?"  
  
"Possibly. You should know better than I do." He gave her a knowing look, and she nodded her head.  
  
"I'll advise StarFleet Command," she said.  
  
"Thank you, Captain Danks."  
  
"You're welcome, Admiral Kirk. Yel'Hal-tor out." Kirk's image disappeared from the viewscreen, and Allison immediately turned to the poor confused Ensign Felsinger. "Get me StarFleet Command."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The orders were short and to the point. Yel'Hal-tor was to proceed to the Mutara sector and assist Enterprise as quickly as possible.  
  
Allison ordered a course change, and the ship was put on Yellow Alert. Allison called down to Engineering and briefed Michael on what was going on, and he promised Warp 9 or better if she needed it. Sickbay was called, and Steve began to prepare for any injuries.  
  
The ship swiftly jumped to warp within minutes, and evened out at about Warp 6.  
  
All the humor from the bridge was gone. This was deadly serious. Allison leaned back in her chair, willing the fight to wait until Yel'Hal-tor arrived. She didn't care if it screwed the timeline.  
  
And abruptly the ship dropped out of warp, engines whining in protest. Red Alert was activated, and Allison had to raise her voice to be heard above the klaxons. "Report!"  
  
"Unidentified ship off the port bow!" Lia shouted back.  
  
"Turn off the damn alarms!" The alarms on the bridge fell silent, but the red lights remained. "Alien ship onscreen."  
  
The ship looked strangely like the Millennium Falcon; a mish-mash of parts held together by sheer stubborness. It was a flat disk, with a bubble on the top center. The whole thing was a dark gray color, with blinking green lights around the edges.  
  
"HOLY HELL!" The call was nearly unanimous. The time-travelers recognized the ship.  
  
It belonged to those who had abducted them. 


	3. Introductions At Last

"The alien ship is hailing us," Felsinger reported.  
  
"Onscreen!" Allison snapped, no longer in even a remotely good mood.  
  
The viewscreen activated, and she found herself looking into the face of one of the abductors. He had a Ferengi-like head with large ears and a ridged nose, but a Klingon ridge on his forehead. One of his eyes had been replaced by a black and green lens; the other eye was a clear sky-blue. Various tubes came out of his back and into his skull from behind.  
  
"We are the T'MrijisuL K'JnN," he said in fairly passable English. "You will surrender to us immediately."  
  
"I don't think so," Allison responded. "I've met your kind before." She signaled to Felsinger to cut audio for a few seconds, and turned to Lia. "Arm phasers. Aim for his engines. I only want them to be disabled, not destroyed."  
  
"Aye, Captain."  
  
"Resistance is useless," the T'MrijisuL K'JnN captain continued. "You will lower your shields or be destroyed."  
  
"Fire."  
  
Two red bolts of phaser fire struck the engines of the ship, and it rocked under the impact. With a puff of expanding shrapnel, the large engine drifted away from the rest of the ship. A second round, and the smaller impulse engine was nothing but space dust.  
  
The alien on the screen let loose an inhuman screech/howl. "How dare you defy us?!"  
  
"Easily!" Allison yelled, her anger easily a match for his. "Provoke a starship, that's what you get. Felsinger, close this channel and have Lieutenant-Commander Steve report to Transporter Room 2. Ship status back on Yellow Alert. Jessie, you're with me. Commander Kristian, you have the conn. Let's go, people!"  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Allison, Jessie, and Steve materialized on the bridge of the alien ship. There were three of the T'MrijisuL K'JnN present. All three leveled phasers at them. "Escape is impossible," the lead alien said. "You will surrender."  
  
Allison barely spared Jessie a glance, but it was enough. The half-Klingon Lieutenant-Commander howled in a Klingon battle cry, startling the aliens just enough for Allison to nerve-pinch the leader. Before the other ones could fire, Jessie slapped the first one's rifle aside and kicked the other alien in the head. The second one went down. Allison grabbed the wrists of the remaining alien and twisted them behind his back.  
  
"Tell us what you're doing back here," she growled, "or I'll break both your arms."  
  
"Stop!" he cried. "I will tell you what you wish to know."  
  
"Then start talking."  
  
"My name is R'IljiN," he said. "We were using standard procedure on a second batch of human children from the 21st century of the planet Terra..."  
  
All three time-travelers paused for a brief instant. Allison released R'IljiN, and he gratefully sat down in a nearby chair. "R'Iljin," Allison said, "were you with the T'MrijisuL K'JnN when they experimented on their first 'batch'?"  
  
He nodded. "I was opposed to it, but I had to follow orders." He looked nervously upward.  
  
"Do you recognize us?" she asked gently.  
  
The alien studied the three closely, and his remaining eye widened dramatically. "You are the results of the first experiment!" He seemed almost...apolgetic.  
  
"You said you were opposed to the mutations they imposed upon us. Will you assist us?"  
  
R'IljiN nodded, suddenly almost excited. "I will show you to the brig! Come!"  
  
The three glanced at each other. Allison shrugged. "Let's do as the guy says."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
True to his word, R'IljiN led the three officers to the brig, which they recognized. Allison looked over at the two empty cells, noting that the metal wall between them was still gone. She turned away from the reminder of their last visit, and glanced into the first cell.  
  
The cell contained two women who looked to be half-Romulan. R'IljiN turned off the forcefield, and Allison called to them, "We're the good guys, and we've come to rescue you. I'm Captain Allison Danks of-"  
  
"Allison?!" the younger woman exclaimed.  
  
"You know me?" Allison asked cautiously, trying to match up the woman's appearance without the pointed ears and eyebrows. She was fairly tall, with light brown hair and an oddly familiar face.  
  
"Of course I know you! It's me, Sam! You know, your cousin?"  
  
Allison's jaw dropped. "SAM?!"  
  
The second woman had long, straight blondish hair. She looked slightly uncomfortable. "Uhh...I'm Karin," she lamely introduced herself. "I'm also called Empressleia..."  
  
Allison turned back to her. "Hey, I remember you!"  
  
"Hey, can we get some help over here?" a male voice called from the next cell over.  
  
Allison stepped over and looked in, with the two half-Romulan ladies behind her. This cell had two half-Vulcan ladies and a half-Andorian male teenager in them. The Andorian had light brown hair and dark brown eyes, with the trademark blue skin and antennae of an Andorian.  
  
Allison immediately recognized the boy. "Nick? Well, well, well, this is just one surprise after another."  
  
Nick looked up. "Allison?!"  
  
Allison shrugged. "Yep. Guess you're stuck with me again, little brother." She looked at the two Vulcans. "You might as well give me your internet names as well as your real ones, because chances are I'll know who you are better that way."  
  
"Cheryl, a.k.a. Tavia," the first one said, shrugging. She had longish light brown hair as well, and pale skin.  
  
"Haven't used it in almost ten years, but...I'm Monica, i.e. mLyn," the other replied. She had short brown hair and hazel eyes. She also wore a pair of glasses.  
  
R'IljiN deactivated the forcefield, and Allison waved. "Say hello to Charmega, or Lugia42 as you might know me."  
  
Their responses were similar to those of Sam and Karin. After the initial shock wore off, Allison noticed that there was one more forcefield activated. "Hey, I wonder who's in here."  
  
The forcefield was deactivated, and almost immediately a Vulcan man fell out and into the main chamber. He was fairly tall, even for a Vulcan, and had tell-tale red hair. He looked up at Allison and managed to raise a hand to point at her. "You! I should've known you had something to do with this," he declared, shivering. And then he fainted.  
  
"Is he gonna be okay?" a soft voice asked.  
  
Allison looked past the Vulcan man and saw a woman with wavy brown hair and glasses sitting against the far wall. Allison frowned as she tried to place the species she had been merged with, and triumphantly found that the lady was half-Minaran, or half-Empath.  
  
"I think so, yes," Allison answered. "I went through pretty much the same thing when they did this to me. I'm Allison 'Charmega'."  
  
The Minaran looked over at her. "Really?"  
  
"Really."  
  
She stood up and walked to the front of the cell. "I'm Kat. Umm...Dark Jedi Princess, that is."  
  
Allison smiled. "Great!" She pointed to the unconscious Vulcan. "Did he tell you his name?" She had a sneaking suspicion about him...  
  
"Uh...he said something about Demos or Daimen or something like that."  
  
Allison looked down at him and, very slowly, raised an eyebrow. "Okay, that works well enough. Steve, would you come over and treat this guy for exposure to cold? You know the treatment." Steve immediately complied, using the same treatment on him that McCoy had used on Allison when she had first become a Vulcan.  
  
Allison pulled out her communicator. "Captain Danks to _ Yel'Hal-tor_, come in please."  
  
"_ Yel'Hal-tor_ here, Captain." The voice was Kristian's.  
  
"Tell the transporter room to prepare for beam-up. We've got company."  
  
"Aye Captain. Anything else?"  
  
"Yes. Have a few nurses run a stretcher to the transporter room. We've got one unconscious. And as soon as we're beamed up, resume course for the Mutara sector. Can't keep _ Enterprise_ waiting."  
  
"Aye, Captain. _ Yel'Hal-tor_ out."  
  
Allison turned to R'IljiN. "Will you be coming with us?"  
  
R'IljiN looked stricken. "Where would I go?" he whispered.  
  
Allison shrugged. "Your choice. You can go wherever you want. And I think it'd be preferable to staying here for when your companions wake up. You could be so much help to us..."  
  
R'IljiN glanced at the corridor that led to the bridge area. "I'm coming with you."  
  
Allison smiled. "Thank you." She flipped open her communicator. "Danks to Transporter Room. Eleven to beam up."  
  
"Eleven, Captain?" The transporter chief sounded mystified.  
  
"Yes, eleven," she repeated.  
  
"Aye, Captain. Beaming up eleven."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The transporter room of the _ Yel'Hal-tor_ was quite large. In addition to the ship having foldable nacelles, a saucer seperation program, a holodeck, and various other new features that weren't currently available on any other ship, the transporter room had been expanded to twice its size, allowing twelve to beam into it at once.  
  
The eleven humanoids materialized in the large room, and Allison sighed happily. "Ah, I love this ship."  
  
Steve and the two nurses picked up the unconscious Vulcan and put him on a stretcher, then headed down to Sickbay. Allison turned to Jessie. "Escort R'IljiN to guest quarters. Make sure he has whatever he needs."  
  
"Aye, Captain." She made a gesture towards the door. "If you would come with me, please..."  
  
R'IljiN looked at Allison, shrugged, and then followed the intimidating Klingon out into the corridor.  
  
Allison turned and looked at the remaining six former humans, all of which looked equally baffled. "I'll take you to Sickbay, and have Steve look you over," she said. "Just to make sure nothing went wrong during the transformation."  
  
She headed for the door, and then noticed that all of them were staring at her, and none had made a move off the transporter pads. "What?"  
  
"Nothing," Sam said as she shot a glance towards the others. This snapped them out of whatever funk they were in, and they obediently followed the captain out into the corridor. 


	4. Explanations

**Chapter Four - Explanations**  
Allison left the six people in Sickbay, much as Scotty had escorted a few of the first time-travelers fifteen years before. And then she was jogging down the corridor, catching the nearest turbolift and riding quickly up to the bridge.  
  
The ride was almost too short, and she stepped down to take the conn. Kristian got out of her chair and headed back up to his station as she sat down. "Status report," she ordered.  
  
It was Kristian who reported this time. "Shortly after your beam-out and our jump to warp, the alien ship exploded due to self-destruct. We are now on course for the Mutara sector. Estimated time of arrival: forty-nine minutes."  
  
"Thank you, Commander." She hit the intercom to Sickbay. "Steve, how're those people doing down there?"  
  
"Well, the Vulcan guy will be okay. Just a simple case of exposure to cold. The others are all perfectly fine. I guess they found a better way to transforming them, because they're almost in perfect condition."  
  
"Thanks. Let me know when the Vulcan man begins to regain consciousness."  
  
"Yes, Captain. Sickbay out."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
"This is impossible, you know," Nick finally said.  
  
Sam looked over at him. "Why's that, little cousin?"  
  
"Because Star Trek's fiction."  
  
"Hate to disappoint you, but it isn't," Steve interrupted the young Andorian. "This is all quite real."  
  
"Okay then..." Karin said. "Then where are we?"  
  
"You're on board the U.S.S. _ Yel'Hal-tor_. Roughly translated from Golic Vulcan, that means 'star trek'. I'm sure you can see the irony."  
  
Nick blinked. "Ooookay...so this ship exists. But there's no _ Enterprise_, right?"  
  
"Wrong again. In fact, we're on course to intercept the _ Enterprise_ in the Mutara sector. Sound familiar, anybody?"  
  
"The Wrath Of Khan!" Cheryl said quickly, like she was in a contest.  
  
"Exactly," Steve said. "From what you know as Star Trek, we are about halfway through The Wrath Of Khan. We've lived this ever since halfway through the _ Enterprise_'s first five-year mission. In fact, we served on the _ Enterprise_ with Captain Kirk for almost three years."  
  
"Captain Kirk's real, too?" Kat asked. She didn't know much about Star Trek - at least not as much as some of the others - but even she knew about Kirk.  
  
Steve smiled. "Actually, he's an Admiral now, but yes. He's very real."  
  
"Cool," Monica said. "And I'm guessing Spock and McCoy and all them are real, too?"  
  
"You got it," Steve affirmed. "Actually, McCoy taught me almost all of my medical knowledge. Each of us was taught by at least one of the _ Enterprise_'s senior officers. For example, Allison learned a majority of her skills, both in technical areas and other areas, from Spock."  
  
"Spock? Spock as in the half-Vulcan Spock, son of Sarek and Amanda?" Karin said disbelievingly.  
  
Steve grinned. "Yes, THAT Spock. But I'll leave the explaining to the captain, if you don't mind. Allison has such as way with people, you know."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
When the _ Yel'Hal-tor_ finally arrived in the Mutara sector, Allison already knew they were too late. A battle-marked _ Enterprise_ drifted in space near a small, Earth-like planet. The nebula that should have been there was nowhere to be found.  
  
Upon their arrival, they were hailed by the _ Enterprise_. Allison reluctantly put the transmission onscreen. A stone-faced Admiral Kirk greeted her. "I'm sorry we're late, Jim," Allison said softly.  
  
"I am too," he said. "I take it you know what's happened?"  
  
Allison nodded. "I'm truly sorry, JT."  
  
Kirk sighed heavily, sounding incredibly weary. "You did your best. _ Enterprise_ out." His image blinked off the screen.  
  
"What happened here, Captain?" one of the ensigns asked, confused and frightened by the sudden air of sadness in the air.  
  
"Captain Spock gave his life in the line of duty today, ensign," Kristian said.  
  
All the time-travelers on the bridge glanced at each other and shared a nearly-unnoticeable smile. They alone knew what was coming next.  
  
The silence was broken by the sound of the intercom. "Sickbay to Captain."  
  
Allison hit the button. "Captain here, go ahead Steve."  
  
"You wanted to know when the Vulcan man woke up? Well, he's getting there."  
  
"I'll be done shortly. Captain out." She closed the channel and headed for the turbolift. "Kristian, you have the conn."  
  
"Aye, Captain."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Allison was at the Vulcan's bedside before he even completely regained consciousness. When he did, he blinked open his eyes and looked up at her. His reaction was instantaneous.  
  
"What the hell?! You...you're dead!"  
  
She grinned. "Nice to see you, too."  
  
"Uh...indeed." His gaze seemed to be fixed on her ears. "Uh...why are your ears..."  
  
"Pointed?" she supplied.  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"Check your own," she directed gently.  
  
His hands immediately flew up to his own ears, and he felt the points on them. There was silence from him for a minute. "Why are OUR ears, then?"  
  
"You remember that little show called Star Trek...?" she said.  
  
"...Oh, SO not amused."  
  
"No, I'm being serious."  
  
He looked up at her. "I know. Still not amused."  
  
She finally decided to throw all pretense of caution aside. "You're being illogical, Damian."  
  
"...No, just unamused, I think, Allison." He gave her a wry grin.  
  
She smiled. "It wasn't really meant to be funny, you know." She was glad that he recognized her. It spared her a lot of explaining.  
  
"Good to hear," Damian said. "Now, I'm assuming that sooner or later I'm going to get an explaination, amusing or not."  
  
Allison shook her head, smiling. "Well, I think the first order of the day is getting you cleared from Sickbay. Then we'll talk. Hey, Steve!"  
  
Damian blinked. "Steve, Steve... I know that name... He was one of the others who disappeared, wasn't he?"  
  
While he was pondering, Steve came in from the next room. "You rang, Captain?"  
  
Allison grinned. "Damian, meet Super Hurricane. Steve, this is Damos."  
  
Damian's eyes lit up in recognition. "SH! Ah, yes, that's right... couldn't remember, it's been so long since everyone vanished and the board went down..."  
  
Allison raised an eyebrow sharply in surprise. "Board went down...? My boy, I think YOU have some explaining to do as well."  
  
Steve jumped into the conversation again. "Well, I'm assuming you want him out of Sickbay, right?"  
  
"Yeah. Since he's conscious, can he leave?"  
  
"I see no reason why not..."  
  
"Good. Come on Damian, let's go for a walk." She got up and waited for him to get up as well.  
  
"Works for me," Damian said, then sat up and got to his feet. He almost fell over. "Whoa...that's weird..."  
  
Allison slapped her forehead. "Oh yeah, I forgot...you'll probably be slightly disoriented at first. After all, you just got about 15 kilograms lighter and four times stronger than your usual self. Sorry."  
  
Damian glared at her. "Thanks for telling me BEFOREHAND."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
It only took Damian a few minutes to get reoriented, then he and Allison set off to walk down the corridors. More than once, Allison caught Damian staring at the alien crewpersons that they were passing by. A Sulamid here, an Andorian there, a few Tellarites every now and then, and three kinds of Denebians wandering the halls. Allison looked over at him as they passed near one of the Horta crewmembers, and saw him staring at it disbelievingly.  
  
"What're you staring at? You'd think you'd never seen a Horta before," Allison said, amused.  
  
"Remember what I was saying earlier about not being amused?" he groaned.  
  
"Hard to forget, nowadays," she answered immediately.  
  
"Good day, Captain," it said, its Horta 'voice' running through a boxy translator set deeply into its silicon-based back. The translator had a Lieutenant's insignia emblazoned on it. It ruffled his fringes a little in its version of a wave.  
  
"And a good day to you as well, Lieutenant Sarahn. Carry on."  
  
"Yes, Captain." The Horta shuffled down the corridor, making grinding noises as he went.  
  
Damian watched him until he was far down the hall, then looked over at Allison. "Would you mind telling me exactly WHY rocks can talk and move on this ship?"  
  
Allison grinned. "Don't worry, everything will be clear. Come on, let's go to the Observation Deck."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The Observation Deck of the _ Yel'Hal-tor_ was much more impressive than the one on the _ Enterprise_. An entire wall was made of transparisteel, giving an excellent view of the stars in front of the ship. The room was curved, so there was a side view as well. Off to the starboard, the two Vulcans could see the battle-scarred _ Enterprise_, and the beautiful Genesis planet.  
  
"Nice view, but you expect this to surprise me?" Damian asked. "After what I've seen in the last twenty minutes..."  
  
"Just had to make sure you believed me. You can never tell these days, what with being in the 23rd century and all...crazier things have happened."  
  
"Oh really. What kind of things?" he wondered out loud.  
  
"Do you really want to know?"  
  
"Not particularly."  
  
"Well, anyway..." She waved her hand around a little. "This is my ship, the _ Yel'Hal-tor_." She winked. "Roughly translated from Golic Vulcan, it means 'star trek'." Damian groaned at the pun. "Go ahead, be that way. But this is the best ship in the 'Fleet. Even better than the _ Enterprise_. We've got foldable warp nacelles, saucer-and-stardrive seperation..."  
  
He raised an eyebrow, clearly not knowing what she was talking about. He motioned for her to make it simpler.  
  
"Moveable engines and detachable parts of the ship."  
  
"Ah. Why didn't you just say so?"  
  
"It's no fun!" she teased him.  
  
"Well, I must say, it's nice to finally meet you, Allison... even though I didn't expect it to ever happen after you vanished for ten years, and as a..."  
  
"Vulcan?" she said.  
  
"That's the one," he confirmed.  
  
"You'd better get to know what being a Vulcan is like. I get the feeling you're going to be one for quite some time."  
  
"Oh joy. Don't think I'm being perfectly calm about this, by the way, I'm just that far into a state of shock that I've come out the other side and it's trying to catch up."  
  
"I know. We all went through that 15 years ago."  
  
"...15 years? You don't look any older than me, and I'm 26!"  
  
She raised an eyebrow. "Well, THANKS. But I just so happen to be 30."  
  
He stared at her in disbelief, and she sighed. "Guess I'd better start explaining in detail..."  
  
"Yes, that'd be a good idea."  
  
"Well...it all started way back in 2001, at a Star Trek convention..." 


	5. New Additions

Chapter Five - New Additions  
Allison told Damian everything that he wanted to know about their past fifteen years. In turn, Damian told her of what had happened in the ten years she had been gone.  
  
With a Moderator and three major boardees gone, the Creative Coalition was eventually abandoned one-by-one until there was no one left, and the board shut down. World War Three escalated not long afterwards, and millions of people died. The war was dying down when the T'MrijisuL K'JnN had kidnapped the seven newcomers.  
  
By the time they were done discussing recent events, the intercom went off. "Captain, R'IljiN requests a meeting with you at your earliest convenience," Jessie said.  
  
"On my way," Allison called back. It was a new model of intercom, in which starship personnel no longer needed to push any buttons to answer a commcall. Quite convenient.  
  
"Well, shall we go?" Allison asked.  
  
"Where exactly are we going?" he asked as he followed her out into the corridor.  
  
"Briefing Room. It's not too far." She stopped at the turbolift doors, and they obediently opened for her. She stepped inside. "You coming?"  
  
"Are you kidding? On a ship this big, I'd get lost if I didn't." He walked over next to her, and the doors slid shut.  
  
"Deck Nine," Allison called, and the turbolift whirred into action.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The turbolift deposited the two Vulcans on Deck 9, and Allison led Damian to the Briefing Room. It was a large room with a round table, so that everyone sitting in the chairs could see each other. The room was primarily a powder gray color, with a darker gray material for the table and chairs.  
  
R'IljiN and Jessie were already there, waiting. R'IljiN was sitting in one of the chairs, while the intimidating half-Klingon Security Chief stood behind him. Steve and Kristian occupied two of the other chairs. Both made a move to stand, but Allison motioned for them to remain seating.  
  
She took a seat across from R'IljiN, and Damian sat in the chair that was to the right of her. "Okay R'IljiN, are you ready to explain the behavior of the T'MrijisuL K'JnN?" she asked.  
  
"I am prepared."  
  
"Good. Please begin."  
  
"My people were created by what you call the Preservers," R'IljiN began. "From your own studies, you know that the Preservers rescue primitive cultures, or place certain beings with specific abilities in the position where they could help in a situation. My species was created to be the most brilliant genetic engineers in the galaxy."  
  
"Created?" Steve asked, surprised. "Genetically twisted clones?"  
  
"In a manner of speaking," R'IljiN answered in a slightly miffed tone of voice.  
  
"Please, continue," Kristian asked him, being careful not to offend this new ally.  
  
R'IljiN nodded. "Recently, those you call the Preservers commanded us to collect specimens from the 21st century of your planet Terra."  
  
"Why?" Allison asked, a tad confused.  
  
"The Preservers can see the future, and can make it however they wish. There is an event that will happen in the future that must not happen the way it would without our intervention. For this, the Preservers needed fourteen beings who could know what will happen in the future, but each had to have special powers that they were not born with. You were selected because all of you were, in the past, somehow involved in what you have dubbed 'Star Trek'."  
  
"Okay, I understand that. But why are all thirteen of the others, in some way, in contact with me in the past? Don't tell me it was a coincidence," Allison said.  
  
"You are the Destined," R'IljiN said, pointed at her. "You are directly related to the incident. You work well with others that you know, and it was felt that the transition would be easier on the other subjects as well if someone they were familiar with was present. You have the right mental characteristics that is needed. You, specifically, are the last of your kind. The only one who remains that can accurately see the future as it is. The human called Gene Roddenbery also had this power, but he did not survive long enough to serve us. The human called Berman took over this 'Star Trek,' but he could not clearly see the future after a certain amount of time had passed. You are the only one who can truly know what will happen."  
  
"Then what does all this have to do with me?" Damian suddenly demanded. Allison glared at him for interrupting, but he ignored her temporarily. "Why was I dragged out of my home, twisted into an alien form, and brought 200 years into the future? Was this all some source of amusement for you to pick me?"  
  
R'IljiN looked honestly surprised by his shouts. "My kind has received no amusement from your abduction, Damian. Allison is the Destined, but you are the Protector. Without you, the great mission can not be carried out."  
  
Damian sat back, stunned. "What do you mean?"  
  
"You are her Anchor. You are to hold her in check until the time arrives. You are to protect her from those who would seek to harm her. You, and only you, can serve as her Balance. None other in all of your planet's history could ever replace you. Not even the Azure or the Crystal could come close to your position."  
  
"The Azure or the Crystal?" Kristian asked curiously. "Who or what are you talking about?"  
  
R'IljiN shook his head. "I will tell you no more, for you are not yet ready. In time, you will understand."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Quite some time later, the Briefing Room doors opened and the occupants walked out. Jessie headed off with R'IljiN to see the alien to his quarters, while Kristian headed for the bridge and Steve went back to Sickbay. Allison and Damian walked down the corridor, past Centaurians and Deirr, not really having a destination in mind.  
  
Both were silent. Neither had been prepared for the double shock of finding that they were all-important keys to the future. R'IljiN had spoken mysteriously, and neither knew exactly what he was talking about. But to both, though unvoiced, his words brought a sense of uneasiness and anticipation at the same time. It caused both of them considerable confusion.  
  
Finally, when they passed by the doorway to Engineering, Damian spoke up. "What do you think he meant back there, about Anchors and Destined and stuff?"  
  
Allison shook her head. "I'm not sure. But he's right, no matter what he said. This isn't just random choosing. Something important is going to happen, and we are going to be smack-dab in the middle of it all."  
  
Damian stared at her. "Wonderful," he grumbled. "I hate it when life throws a curveball."  
  
The statement was so ludicrous, Allison began to laugh. Damian looked over at her and found himself laughing as well. With smiles on their faces, they made their way to a turbolift.  
  
"Deck Three," Allison called, and the turbolift obediently hummed into action. "It's good to have you around, Damian."  
  
"Glad to be of assistance."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Deck Three of the Yel'Hal-tor was where the senior crew's quarters were located. Allison's cabin was close to the turbolift they exited, and thus it wasn't a very far walk. She entered her quarters, which were still quite sparsely decorated, and sat down at her desk. She looked up at Damian. "So, now's the time to fix this little problem of you new people not being in StarFleet..."  
  
"Now?"  
  
"Why not?" She shrugged. "Computer, begin recording new personnel file, basic."  
  
"Recording. Name of being?"  
  
She gestured to Damian that he should speak. "Damian Beresford," he said.  
  
"Gender?"  
  
"Male."  
  
"Species and degree?"  
  
"Vulcan, full."  
  
"Rank at time of entry into StarFleet?"  
  
"Lieutenant," Allison told it.  
  
The computer made a beeping noise. "Basic personnel file created and filed."  
  
Damian raised an eyebrow. "And that's all you have to do?"  
  
Allison grinned. "You got that right, Lieutenant Beresford. Welcome to the team."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
During the next few hours, Allison had each new time-traveler report to her quarters for recording of their personnel files. All were immediately given Lieutenant ranking, rather than Ensign. A few of them were unhappy with even a Lieutenant's position, but Allison quickly made them forget about it.  
  
"We original seven started off as Ensigns and had to work our way up the hard way," she told them. "Be glad I'm bending the rules to give you such a high starting rank. If Command had their way, you'd all be Ensigns right about now."  
  
Nicky was almost immediately assigned to Transporter duty. The ensign in charge taught him the basics, which were pretty much: get the coordinates, push the buttons, and pray everything comes out okay. Advanced training only took a few more minutes.  
  
Karin volunteered to help out in Sickbay, and it wasn't long before Steve started teaching her all about being a medical officer. She learned quickly, and soon became one of his assistants.  
  
Monica and Cheryl were assigned as relief Navigator and Helmswoman. They would take over the helm/nav station if anything were to happen to May and Lia. Sam and Kat chose the jobs of Biologist and Astrophysics Assistant.  
  
Damian, trying to figure out a suitable job for himself, finally decided on Communications Officer. Upon hearing the name Felsinger, he looked startled, but he began taking lessons from the ensign. Within days, he was pretty good at working the console, and no longer needed help with everything. Occasionally, a signal would come in that he didn't know about, but he picked up on it all fairly easily.  
  
As for R'IljiN...he was dropped off at Starbase 23 and handed over to StarFleet security forces for questioning and possible awarding of Federation citizenship.  
  
All in all, things were going along pretty well.  
  
At least, that's what they thought. 


	6. Diplomats, Oi

**Chapter Six - Diplomats, Oi...**

The new time-travelers had only been on the _ Yel'Hal-tor_ for about six months when the call came in. StarFleet was requesting _ Yel'Hal-tor_ to drop off two Vulcan representatives from their crew on the planet Embryian. A telepathic birdlike species called the Cerioa and another native species, non-telepath insectiods called the Kitrack, were in a dispute over land use. The Cerioa wanted the entire planet to use for growing trees and other delicate plants which required very stable soil. The Kitrack wanted the land to be used for building tunnels for mining the very minerals which made the Embryian trees grow so tall and thick. Naturally, this caused a problem.  
  
The Kitrack had requested two Vulcans, known to be honorable touch-telepaths, as mediators of the dispute. They were taking no chances that the Cerioa would lie to them and take 'their' land unjustly. The Cerioa had agreed to this, but only to ease the fears of the Kitrack.  
  
Allison read the report and snorted in disgust. It was obvious that two such species co-existing on a planet would argue over land usage.  
  
It quickly became obvious to her that the Kitrack wouldn't appreciate StarFleet sending any half-Vulcans. So, there were only two people she could possibly send on this mission.  
  
She hit an intercom button. "Captain to Lieutenant Beresford, report to my quarters immediately."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
"I'm an Aussie, not a diplomat!"  
  
Allison laughed at Damian's remark. He glanced at her oddly, not knowing what he'd said that was so amusing. "Sorry, Damian. But you and I are the only full Vulcans on board. Hell, we're the only full Vulcans in this entire sector. And...well...orders are orders."  
  
"Why can't the _ Enterprise_ do it? They've got some Vulcans on board," he argued.  
  
Allison shook her head. "They're busy with the Nimbus III hostage situation. Besides, I don't think that ship is quite....together. They need everyone they can get. Plus, the ship just got sent into service last week. You really think they'd be ready for a challenge so soon?"  
  
Damian held up his hands. "All right, I get the picture."  
  
"Good. Pack up anything you'll need. We're leaving tomorrow at 0850 in a shuttlecraft, and we may not be back for a while."  
  
"Why can't we take the whole starship?" he wondered out loud.  
  
"Because while we'll be off with the birds and the bugs, the _ Yel'Hal-tor_ has to deliver some much-needed medical supplies on Faragos. That's almost the exact opposite direction that Embryian is in, and the systems are too far away from each other for a simple drop-off."  
  
"....ah."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The next morning, Allison and Damian were stepping into the shuttlecraft _ Igen'Zahelsu_. Allison sat down in the pilot's seat, which was on the left side of the craft. Damian sat on the right.  
  
Allison triggered the comm. "Mega Shuttle _ Igen'Zahelsu_ requesting permission to disembark."  
  
"Permission granted. Have a nice trip," Kristian responded from the bridge.  
  
"Will do. See you in a few weeks." She closed the channel and turned her attention to the controls. Moving with the ease of a born pilot, she launched the small ship out of the bay. Once the craft was cleared of the _ Yel'Hal-tor_'s shields and warp field, the massive starship jumped into warp.  
  
"Well, it looks like we're on our own," Allison remarked as she lined up the _ Igen'Zahelsu_ to point in the direction of Embryian. "You ready?"  
  
"As ready as I'll ever be."  
  
Allison punched up Warp Two and engaged the engines.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Kristian sat in the command chair, uncommonly quiet. Jessie noticed this and came over to stand next to him. "Something wrong?" she asked quietly.  
  
He looked up at her, startled. "What? Oh...yeah. I dunno, I've just got a really weird feeling about those two going off to Embryian. It's probably nothing."  
  
Jessie looked at him sideways. "Suuuuure. You know as well as I do that if there's any trouble out there, they'll be able to find it. At least, Ael will."  
  
Kristian reluctantly nodded. "Yeah. And that's what bothers me."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
A few days later...  
  
Allison sighed and put her head in her hands as the Cerioa representative once again began screeching his beak off at the Kitrack ambassador. This had been going on for several hours straight.  
  
"You wish to kill our trees and maim our land!" the Cerioa was currently screaming. "How dare you dishonor the land in this manner?"  
  
"Trees are of no use to us in times of turbulence!" the Kitrack clacked. "Our finances must be reinforced in case of another emergency! Does not the planet have enough trees already?"  
  
"Do you not have enough marqs already? Marqs are just leaves pretending to be worth something! Trees will preserve our races for generations!"  
  
"Do they do this often?" Damian mumbled to her, well below the range of the aliens' hearing.  
  
"Constantly."  
  
The Kitrack ambassador finally glanced over at the two Vulcans, who immediately made it look like they'd been listening to the entire fiasco. "What is your suggestion, Captain? And yours, Lieutenant?"  
  
Allison glanced over at Damian with a look that clearly said "I'll handle this." He gladly let her. "Ambassador Sytrel, I believe that you have a very unique situation, and I can not give a solution until I have telepathically scanned you both. If you have no objections...?"  
  
"I have none," Ambassador Sytrel said quickly. He looked over at the enraged Cerioa.  
  
"I will allow you to scan me," the Cerioa finally said. He managed to look offended and compliant at the same time, somehow.  
  
"Good." Allison stood up and moved over to Sytrel. The insectiod did not even flinch as she placed a hand upon his clawed "hand" and probed his mind. His multifaceted eyes did not even look at her, but remained facing Representative Tchan.  
  
Once Allison was done, she turned to Tchan. The birdlike creature twitched as if to move away from her, but allowed her to lay a hand across his golden crest. "Lower your barriers," she ordered him before delving into the avian mind. He reluctantly did as he was told.  
  
After several moments, she lowered her hand and opened her eyes. "I will consult with Lieutenant Beresford before I will give you my suggestions. This session is closed. I will meet you here tomorrow at the same time."  
  
Tchan nodded his birdlike head. "As you wish, Captain." Then he spread his wings a little and walked out of the building.  
  
"It was an honor to be with you, Captain," Sytrel said respectfully before he too left, though he used a different door than the one Tchan had used. Interesting.  
  
"Well, THAT got us absolutely nowhere," Damian remarked.  
  
"No kidding. I really don't see a way out of this one yet."  
  
"I'm sure you'll find one sooner or later."  
  
She glanced over at him. "Har har."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Late that night, Allison stayed awake and looked up at those unfamiliar stars, wondering which one was her Earth. "I can't do this alone," she said softly, hoping that the Preservers were listening. "I can't think of a solution. I thought you were supposed to manipulate things so that we could do this 'great mission' of yours."  
  
Her eyes scanned the stars as she spoke, and for some odd reason her gaze seemed to be attracted to one of the Embryian moons. It was the largest moon of the four, and it glowed a soft blue color. It was called Shardi.  
  
Suddenly getting an idea from the mind-melds, she turned and walked toward where the _ Igen'Zahelsu_ was resting. 


	7. Problem Mostly Solved

Chapter Seven - Problem Mostly Solved  
  
"Damian, get up! I found the answer!"  
  
He groaned and rolled over, squinting at the sudden bright light that appeared in his face. "What is it now?" he grumbled, finally making out a familiar face next to the light. "Don't you realize some people actually SLEEP at night?"  
  
"Oh, sleep. Who cares about sleep? Damian, you didn't hear me. I found the answer."  
  
He blinked up at her sleepily. "Answer to what?"  
  
"Oh, you-!" She slammed a pillow down on his head.  
  
"Hey!" Now he was awake, and his brain finally caught up. "Oh yeah, THAT answer. Wonderful; tell those two people in the morning." He grabbed the pillow she'd thrown and put it over his ears.  
  
And quite abruptly, he found himself with his top half on the floor, his legs still on the narrow bunk of the shuttle. "Ouch!"  
  
"Pay attention!" she scolded him.  
  
"All right, all right, I'm listening!" The rest of him fell to the floor with a thud, and he sat up, rubbing his head. "What's this all about?"  
  
"What's Shardi made of?"  
  
Damian blinked at the sudden turn, and wondered what was up with the sudden trivia question. "It's made up of mainly...iriduim and sulfius, I think. Why?"  
  
"Use your brain! What's the stuff that makes the Embryian trees grow, and that the Kitrack want to mine?"  
  
He finally understood. "Iridium...what, you're planning on reminding them of that?"  
  
"Yeah, why not?"  
  
"...Ael, it took you six days to remember that?!"  
  
"Hey, no one else remembered! What does that say about those Cerioa and Kitrack, hmm?"  
  
Damian sighed and dragged himself back up onto the bunk, not even bothering to lie down straight. "And you had to wake me up for THAT?"  
  
"Of course." Her voice had a slight hint of a teasing note.  
  
"...Go to sleep, Ael."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The next day, Allison presented her findings to the Cerioa and the Kitrack. Tchan was impressed, but he still insisted on having the planet for Cerioa uses. Sytrel was slightly more excited that Tchan.  
  
"This is amazing!" he exclaimed. "I cannot believe we did not see it earlier! There is so much potential in the moon. Imagine, mining from a MOON!"  
  
Tchan idly examined his front talons. "So, you're giving Shardi to the Kitrack and letting us Cerioa have Embryian? Very interesting strategy, Captain."  
  
"Yes, but it's not enough...the iridium on Shardi will soon run dry!" Sytrel protested.  
  
Tchan's feathers ruffled, and he was in the midst of preparing a retort when Damian stepped in. "I don't believe you've studied those figures closely, Ambassador Sytrel," he smoothly cut in. "The moon is made up of nearly 86.3% iridium. You should have no problem mining for your minerals."  
  
Sytrel's antennae jerked to the side in a surprised gesture, and he looked back at the padd. "Amazing! I cannot believe we never saw the mining potential on Shardi! Without your help, we most likely would not have seen this. You have my clan's ultimate thanks, Captain Danks and Lieutenant Beresford."  
  
"My nesting is indebted to you," Tchan said, gracefully opening his wings and bowing his head in a sign of respect. "Your wisdom is unmatched by any Cerioa."  
  
Allison inclined her head respectfully. "We are glad we have been of service to your respective species. If there are no further issues, Lieutenant Beresford and I will take our leave."  
  
"Of course," Tchan said, rustling his feathers. "May the sun shine and strengthen you." He snapped his "fingers" and vanished in a teleportation move.  
  
Sytrel gave them a similar parting blessing, and exited the room through the same door as before. Allison looked over at Damian. "Well, that was an inconvenient headache," he volunteered.  
  
She snorted. "No kidding. Come on, let's go back to the shuttle and get to the rendezvous point."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
As the Igen'Zahelsu lifted off, Damian looked over at the Vulcan woman next to him. He watched as she maneuvered the small ship out of the atmosphere of Embryian, slender hands dancing over the control panels as she programmed their course...  
  
Damian shook his head. What the hell was he DOING? This was not like him to think in such a manner...and why were his hands shaking a little?  
  
Allison noticed his sudden confusion. "Is something wrong?"  
  
"No," he quickly jumped to ease her worry, which intensified it slightly instead. "Nothing's wrong. Umm...I think I'm gonna go get some sleep. Can you pilot this thing on your own?"  
  
She frowned. "Damian, of course I can..."  
  
But he was already at the back of the shuttle, lying down on the only bunk in the craft.  
  
Allison stared in his direction for a few moments, then turned back to the panels. But even as she punched up Warp One, her mind was still on the Vulcan man behind her, and how familiar he had acted...  
  
She frowned and sat back in the chair, closing her eyes in concentration. The ship was on an autoprogrammed course, so she didn't need to currently maneuver the ship. So she dug way back in her mind, to her memories of the old Star Trek television show.  
  
Abruptly, her eyes snapped open. No....it couldn't be...could it?  
  
She glanced over her shoulder, and bit her lip. "Damn. This is definitely a problem. He doesn't know...how should I tell him? How do you tell ANYONE about this?"  
  
'It has to do with biology,' Spock's shaky voice said in her mind as she recalled the specific incident. 'Vulcan males must endure it every seventh year of their adult life...' 


	8. Multiple Problems

Chapter Eight - Multiple Problems  
  
Damian awoke to the whine of stressed engines, and Allison's cursing. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!"  
  
"Whassamatta?" he called, only half-awake.  
  
"These engines have gone haywire! Get up here and help me find a planet to land us on!"  
  
In a flash, he was fully awake and in the copilot's seat. Adrenaline coursed through his veins, making his blood feel as if it were burning...he clenched his hands for a moment, then pulled up a chart of the sector. "Here, Ael! Got an unnamed planet at thirty-five mark fifteen. Think you can land us in a forest?"  
  
Even in the midst of the crisis, she grinned. "I can land this bucket anywhere!" she declared. "Lay in a course, and I'll see if I can get a few more klicks out of this baby."  
  
"Aye, Captain!"  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The planet was peaceful, covered in lush green grass and unbelievably huge trees with wide gaps in between them. Several types of birds flew from branch to branch, and strange-looking reptilian creatures crawled through the bushes and over rocks. All was peaceful.  
  
That is, until a large white, blocky object came hurtling out of the sky. Birds screeched in alarm and scattered, while other creatures fled on the ground.  
  
The shuttle crashed into the forest floor, burying the "nose" several feet into the soil of a small clearing. Steam rolled off the shiny metal covering and escaped into the atmosphere. After a few moments, the back hatch clanged open and two humanoids staggered out, a small bit of smoke billowing out of the craft above their heads.  
  
"Well," Allison coughed. "THAT was certainly the most graceful crash- landing I've ever done."  
  
"Umm-hmm."  
  
Allison looked over at Damian. He was standing with his fists clenched, cheeks flushed a pale green, and he seemed to be shivering slightly. She winced, and finally decided on what she was going to do.  
  
"Damian...have you felt odd lately?"  
  
He blinked in surprise at the question. "Uhh...a little...why?"  
  
She hesitated. "Well...I kind of forgot to tell you something about Vulcans."  
  
"Oh, wonderful. What?"  
  
"Uhh...you see, it's like this...every seven years..."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
When she was finished explaining it to him, he looked over at her slightly sideways. "You're kidding, right?"  
  
"Sorry, but I'm not."  
  
He sighed. "Well, at least now I know what's wrong with me...and how I'm gonna die."  
  
"No!"  
  
Startled by her outburst, he merely stood completely still.  
  
"I won't allow you to die, Damian. I know you've only know me for a short time, but I won't let you die from this." She stared into his eyes, pleading with him. " Dungi tu sahrafel ?"  
  
He gazed back at her, and finally answered. " Kal-tor palikau ."  
  
Silent once more, Allison held up two fingers on her right hand. Across from her, Damian also held up two fingers and touched them to hers.  
  
"Damian...parted from me and never parted, never and always touching and touched," Allison said. " Wuhkuh eh teretuhr ."  
  
Damian somehow knew what to say. "Allison-kam ...parted from me and never parted, never and always touching and touched... ki'sarlah ."  
  
With the bond formed, the two Vulcans stepped back into the shuttle, and the ancient Vulcan cycle of pon farr took over, as it had for countless centuries.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
The next day, Allison and Damian ventured out of the Igen'Zahelsu to check on the engines. The two stayed close together, though they didn't immediately realize it.  
  
"The warp drive's shot, and we'll never make it out on impulse," Allison finally concluded after several minutes worth of digging through the engines' guts. "Looks like we hit some kind of meteor shower or something, and didn't realize it. Navigational shields must have temporarily failed...damn, of all the lousy, rotten luck..."  
  
"So what do we do?" Damian asked, putting a toolbox away.  
  
"We call for the Yel'Hal-tor and wait for them to come pick us up," she answered, heading for the back hatch.  
  
And abruptly, both of them froze. "Do you hear that?" Damian whispered to her, knowing that his voice was well into the range of Vulcan hearing.  
  
Allison nodded. "Come on, let's check it out," she said quietly.  
  
They slowly, cautiously stepped out of the clearing and into the forest. The two Vulcans walked for several minutes without seeing anything, then Allison spotted something.  
  
"Damian, look," she whispered.  
  
They were surrounded by very thick trees, with some kind of nest near the top of each. Strange sounds came from the nests: some kind of growling or humming, accompanied by a sound of something cracking.  
  
"I have a bad feeling about this..." Allison said, and slowly began to back up.  
  
The humming noise was quickly replaced by the sound of a thousand voices screeching, and both Vulcans turned to run.  
  
Allison suddenly felt a massive weight on her back, accompanied by the sharp prick of claws digging into her back. Flipping over as she fell, she caught a sight of bronze skin and scales. She looked up into the face of a creature unlike she had ever seen before. It had a wedge-shaped head with glowing crystalline eyes, and behind each there was a tiny black spike. Its neck had a thick ridge of bronze skin, and the creature had many sharp teeth. Its still-wet wings were spread out, and its long tail was wrapped around next to Allison's head.  
  
From another tree, she caught another flash of bronze as a similar creature dropped on top of Damian. He yelped and tried to get away, but the other creature had a firm grip on him.  
  
The creature on top of Allison looked down at her, and placed its three- fingered, humanlike "hands" against her head. She felt a mental push, but did not feel fear at being invaded in such a manner. It looked at her with something like a smile on its face, and then her mind was completely opened to the creature.  
  
  
  
  
  
Author's Note: For those of you who don't know, which are few but not unknown, pon farr is the Vulcan mating cycle. Every seven years, the Vulcan male experiences symptoms of fever, shaking limbs, loss of emotional control, breakdown of mental discipline, short-term memory loss, and severe chemical imbalance. Pon farr only ceases if the male mates with a female that is telepathically Bonded (married) to him. If he does not, the male dies within the week. 


	9. The Dream

**Chapter Nine - The Dream**  
Allison woke up slowly, as if from a dream state. The chirping of birds seemed unusually loud, accompanied by the winds in the trees and the sound of wings flapping. She opened her eyes, startled at the feel of fresh soil and leaves beneath her, and every sight seemed to jump out at her.

She sat up, blinking in surprise. There was a small camp of a sort set up next to her. A small campfire was burning a few feet away, with a boiling pot of tea of some sort over it. Several other items and a knapsack were neatly laid out against a nearby flat-topped boulder.

"What's going on?" she wondered out loud, then heard the sound of feet on grass and the rustling of wings. Scolding herself for not noting that sound earlier, she turned around.

She was met with the sight of a small lizard-like creature, sitting on his - how she knew it was "his" was something she couldn't figure out - haunches. Dull bronze scales covered his body. His wings were folded against his body, but even so Allison could tell that when opened, he would have a rather large wingspan. A long tail curved around him, and the tip tapped the ground. He had his hind feet tucked under him, and was holding up most of his weight with his three-fingered forepaws. He had a long, slender neck with a thick ridge of skin, and his head was wedge-shaped. His eyes were closed, and there was a small black horn behind each eye.

She looked at the creature, noticing that it looked so mythological, perhaps like a dragon.

He raised his head and opened large, crystal-like eyes...

_Welcome to K'ti'ma and it's lands,  
We greet you with open hands._

Allison blinked in surprise. She knew that the creature's mouth had not moved, yet she knew it was he who had spoken. "Who are you?"

_I am the Azure, as you can see,  
And all that makes that up is me.  
I am the dragon of the Master Plan.  
My name is Cobalt, assist you I can._

"Uh-huh." She sat down on a nearby rock. "Umm...can I ask a question? Why are you rhyming?"

_K'ti'ma is a land of song,  
It is to right things that go wrong.  
You learn some things anew,  
And I will be here too.  
You can set things right,  
And drive back the Eternal Night._

She frowned. "What is the Eternal Night?"

_It has been so long, and ages past,  
Since we have served humankind last.  
So long without help from dragonkind,  
Your species remembers not in the mind.  
The Eternal Night will come to be,  
If you do not trust in me.  
The Eternal Night is destruction and pain,  
And there will be nothing to gain.  
But you know not all that you need,  
And you must go at a faster speed,  
You are the one who will bring forth,  
The dragons, hailing to the north._

"So, basically you've been alone but you've met humans before, and you're here to teach me things I need for the future." Cobalt nodded his bronze head. "Okay, is this in any way connected to the T'MrijisuL K'JnN?"

_That is what they were made to do,  
And that's the reason I chose you._

Allison mostly understood him. "Why are you only now finding me?"

_The time was chosen long ago,  
Before your species began to grow.  
Much had you to learn before,  
And now you can learn even more.  
Your unity with the Protector,  
Has opened up the vital door._

The Protector was obviously Damian. She remembered that from what R'IljiN had told them a few months before. "So now that Damian and I are Bonded, I can learn more?" She was very surprised, having not expected this young dragon to know all the details of her life. Cobalt patiently nodded his head.

_Come with me!  
You will see!  
It is now time for memory._

~~~~~~~

Damian had a similar experience in waking up. Except he woke up to a delicate-looking bronze dragon with a swooping neck ridge, who was standing on its hind legs in front of him.

_I am the Crystal of the tale,  
Making sure that all goes well.  
I am the dragon of the Game,  
Illumina is what is my name._

Damian felt a headache coming on. "Please, no rhymes."

_I'm sorry, but I cannot halt.  
It really is not all my fault.  
Rhyming is what I must do,  
Even so, I stay with you._

He sighed, and decided that he had to put up with it. "Alright, what am I here for?"

_You are here to learn new things,  
And this is what my kind brings.  
A gift to you, from all of us.  
We're sorry if we caused a fuss.  
But you must start your learning now  
Come this way, I'll show you how!_

~~~~~~~

_Now here is someone you will know,  
He will be different, though.  
Talk to him and your knowledge will grow._

"Okay, who is it?" Allison asked as she and Cobalt entered a small clearing. In the clearing was a teenage boy, about fifteen years old. He had light blond hair and greenish-brown eyes, and he was dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt.

The boy turned to look at her. "Oh, hello!" he called. "Would you happen to know where we are?"

"All I know is that the area is called K'ti'ma. I'm not sure if that is the name of the planet or the forest," she answered carefully, wondering what this was all about.

"Well, at least I'm not the only one lost around here," he said, then offered her his hand. "My name's Jimmy Kirk. What's yours?"

Allison shot a glance at Cobalt, and raised an eyebrow.

_I said you knew him, and it's true.  
I have not lied to you,  
And you still have things to do._

"Whatever," she muttered, and the young James Kirk looked over at her oddly. "He rhymes all the time. It gets really annoying after a while."

"But he didn't say anything..." Jimmy looked puzzled.

"Yes, he did. I think he's telepathic." She looked over at Cobalt. "Let him hear you, will you?"

_Now that you have told me to,  
This is something I can do._

Jimmy stared hard at Cobalt for a minute. Then he looked back up at Allison. "I never did get your name."

"Sorry. I'm Allison Danks, and this is Cobalt."

"Danks? My mother's maiden name was Danks...you wouldn't happen to have a relative named Winona, would you?" Jimmy asked, surprised.

"Actually, no," she said, crossing her fingers behind her back and feeling guilty at lying to this young Kirk. "I don't think we're related, unless you're part Vulcan."

"That's true." He paused. "This may sound completely irrelevant, and please don't take this the wrong way, but you really don't act like a Vulcan. What's your blood type?"

She blinked, mind racing. She only remembered hearing about one Vulcan blood type from the old Star Trek episode "Journey to Babel," but she had never bothered to find out her own. "I'm actually not sure." Then she remembered the knapsack. "There might be something in here to tell us," she said, unfastening the straps.

Jimmy opened up the knapsack, and soon pulled out a small black box with a screen and a button on it. "Here, this should tell us." He hit the button and held the box up near Allison's arm, and it beeped.

He looked a little surprised. "You're S-positive. That's almost unheard of. What House do you come from?"

She looked over at him. "Uhh...I don't come from a House, actually. I was raised on Earth."

He glanced at her oddly. "I've never heard of a Vulcan living on Earth before..."

_Look this way and be alert!  
Something's there and it could hurt!_

Allison turned to the direction Cobalt was looking in, having picked up on the baby dragon's worried tone. The sound of something sharp biting into wood, and she looked up to see a very large, adult version of Cobalt with long, curving black horns that went well past its nose, and scales of a deep red blood color. Its tail whipped around as if alive, making a bell-like sound. It snarled, and blue-colored liquid dripped from its fangs. The saliva landed on a bush and it began to sizzle, eating away at the plant. The large dragon began to growl deep in its throat.

"This can't be good..." Allison muttered.

Cobalt was growling also, which faintly surprised her.

_That one is no friend of ours!  
He could defeat you with his powers.  
Careful, or he will destroy you,  
But fight Sanguine, you must do!_

Jimmy whipped out a phaser that Allison hadn't noticed, and aimed it at Sanguine's head. The dragon suddenly roared, an ear-splitting awful shriek, and lunged at them both.

Allison leaped out of the way and reached for her own phaser, not expecting to find it at her side and was more than mildly surprised when it was.

Jimmy fired at Sanguine, intending to kill him quickly. The red blast struck the red scales at Sanguine's neck with deadly force-

-and the dragon sat back, unharmed but apparently amused. It snarled in a parody of a grin, then jumped on top of Jimmy and bit down hard on his legs. Jimmy screamed, and Sanguine roared in triumph as he began to tear at the teenager. Allison fired at the dragon with her phaser, but he ignored her and continued ripping Jimmy apart. Cobalt sprang upon Sanguine's back and arched his neck as a ripple moved across his scales toward his head. His head darted forward, spitting a glob of blue-tinted saliva onto Sanguine's back. The older dragon screamed as acid melted scales and flesh and bone, and knocked Cobalt off before spreading his wings and flying away in a flash, taking Jimmy with him.

Allison stood in the clearing for a few minutes, staring at where Sanguine had flown. She heard Cobalt step up behind her. "This...this isn't right. He didn't die like this, at this age."

_I'm sorry I have to tell you this,  
But things have seemed so amiss.  
This isn't really what it seems,  
We dragons only call it the Dream.  
The elders have been testing you,  
And it's supposed to help me, too.  
That was only part of the test,  
It will take time to find the rest._

She frowned. "So none of this is real?" Cobalt nodded his bronze head.

_These lessons are to help you learn,  
That which you have rightly earned.  
But some of the lessons will be hard,  
And some are like a wild card.  
But they are only meant to help you,  
And hurting is not what you are meant to do,  
Even though you might be made to._

Allison stared into the dragon's crystal eyes and reached out mentally, trying to see if he was telling the truth. Without effort, all of the baby dragon's thoughts and feelings rushed into her in a split second. Cobalt made a sort of soft crooning noise, enjoying the mental touch, and Allison realized that all of her own mind was open to the dragon as well. She released the deep mental contact, and sat back. "This is going to take some getting used to."

  
  
  
  
  
Author's Notes: The dragons of K'ti'ma and all related items belong to Jennifer Embree, and are used with permission. Cobalt is my character, and Illumina is Damian's character. All facts about K'ti'ma and its lifeforms come from the Star Wars Genesis saga, which is a VERY good fic series that I recommend to any and all Warsies. 


	10. Here Be Dragons!

**Chapter Ten - Here Be Dragons!**  
Damian and Allison, though unaware of each other's journeys, led similar experiences. Their lessons always took place in a new clearing and involved someone that they knew, but all of them required some deep thought to understand. Some of them still puzzled them, like Damian's encounter with a talking kangaroo or Allison's meeting with a jogging dolphin, but for the most part Cobalt and Illumina could try to explain, although they didn't know much more than their respective Vulcan did. 

According to the Dream, the two Vulcans were a special case. Normally there would only be one dragon/_padmiri_ team at a time, but for this event there were two needed. The telepathic bond between all four was also necessary, so the Mother Dragon was allowing it only this once.

And as the lessons went on, both dragons grew to be taller than the Vulcans when on their hind legs. Their scales stretched over well-honed muscle, and their black horns curved forward until they were almost at the end of their snouts. The neck, or dorsal, ridge also developed a way to move; raised when they were relaxed or sprinting, and lowered when angry or afraid.

And then came the day on which the lessons were over.

~~~~~~~ 

Allison opened her eyes, noting the sounds of the birds in the trees, as well as the faint calls of faraway dragons. She slowly sat up, looking around her and finally spotting Cobalt. He was about six or seven feet tall now and, to her surprise, his eyes were completely black. 

"Good morning," Cobalt said, dropping his jaw into a close imitation of a smile. His voice sounded like a male version of Allison's voice, with a slight catlike purr or growl under it. 

She blinked. "Did you just speak out loud?" 

He nodded. "Now that you are no longer in the Dream, I don't have to talk telepathically all the time. I don't have to rhyme, either," he said with a rumbling laugh. 

"Well, THAT is a relief," another male voice came from nearby. Allison turned and saw Damian sitting next to another bronze dragon with black eyes. Damian's dragon, Illumina, was very similar to Cobalt, with only the shape of her neck ridge and more delicate-looking legs to distinguish her. Cobalt's neck ridge was like sharp inverted curves, while Illumina's dorsal ridge was more wavy. 

"No kidding," Illumina said out loud in a higher-pitched, feminine version of Damian's voice. She, too, had a slight rumble to her tone, as well as an Australian accent that matched Damian's perfectly. 

Allison stood up. "How long have we been here?" she wondered out loud. 

"Nearly one month," Cobalt answered. 

"One month?!" Damian and Allison exclaimed. 

"We were supposed to meet up with the _Yel'Hal-tor_ weeks ago!" Allison said. "I wonder if they're looking for us..." 

"Well, you WERE about to make a comm call," Illumina pointed out. "I think we should head back and see if the comm system even still works." 

"Good idea," Allison said. "Let's go." 

The foursome stepped back into the forest, in the direction of the downed shuttle. 

~~~~~~~

The _Yel'Hal-tor_ glided through space, and for all appearances it seemed like everything was normal. But inside the massive ship, there were a lot of very worried crewpersons. 

"They can't have just disappeared," Kristian said for the umpteenth time. "The Cerioa and the Kitrack said that they did indeed leave Embryian, but we know that they didn't make it to the rendezvous point. No comm calls, no distress calls, no nothing! Where can they be?" 

"Could something have happened to them?" Jessie asked. 

The two were on the bridge, keeping their voices low enough that it was a private conversation. The other members of the bridge crew worked furiously, trying to come up with a likely place for the two missing officers to be. 

"I think that's very likely," Kristian started to say, but suddenly Ensign Felsinger yelped in surprise. 

"Sir, I'm getting a signal from the _Igen'Zahelsu_! Audio only." 

"Put it on speakers, ensign!" 

The speakers clicked on. "Danks to _Yel'Hal-tor_, please come in..." the Captain's familiar voice said. 

"_Yel'Hal-tor_ here, Captain. Where in the galaxy ARE you?" Kristian answered, overwhelmed with relief. The other crewpersons audibly sighed, thrilled that the Captain was finally found. 

"We're on a previously unnamed planet in the Damark sector. It's a binary star system, with a yellow star and a red giant star. This is the only inhabitable planet, which the natives call K'ti'ma V. We crash-landed a month ago." 

"'We'? Does that mean Damian is with you?" Kristian asked. 

There was a pause, and several voices chuckled before Damian's voice finally came through the speaker. "Yeah, I'm here too." 

"Can you come and pick us up?" Allison's voice said. "We kind of wrecked the shuttle. The comm's all that works, and that took a bit of jury-rigging." 

"We're already on our way," Kristian answered. "_Yel'Hal-tor_ out." 

~~~~~~~

The _Yel'Hal-tor_ pulled into orbit around K'ti'ma V a few hours after the call, and they immediately established contact with the two officers. 

"Patch me in to the transporter room," Allison said, and Ensign Felsinger redirected her frequency down to Nick's panel. 

"Lieutenant Danks here." 

"Nick, lock the transporter onto us. We're slightly north of the shuttle. Four to beam up." 

"Pardon? Four?" 

"Yes, four. Two Vulcans, two non. That's an order, mister." 

"Yes, Captain." Nick sounded puzzled, but he followed orders. "Energizing four." 

Allison, Damian, Cobalt, and Illumina materialized in Transporter Room 2. Both dragons immediately ducked their heads slightly at the appearance of the roof, but they recovered quickly and turned to Nick. 

"Hello, Nick," Cobalt offered to the stunned half-Andorian boy behind the console. 

He stared at them, open-mouthed. "You've got....dragons?" 

Cobalt extended a bronze paw and shook Nick's hand. "I am Cobalt of K'ti'ma," he said, scales chiming slightly at the motion. "Pleased to finally meet you." 

Illumina also shook Nick's hand. "I am Illumina of K'ti'ma," she introduced herself, making the same musical noise as her scales shifted. 

Just then, the doors swooshed open, and Jessie, Karin, and Steve quickly stepped into the room. All three froze at the sight of Allison and Damian with two large bronze dragons behind them. 

Allison grinned and waved. "Hi." 

Damian looked over at Allison. "I think we've got some explaining to do..." 

~~~~~~~

Over the next two hours, Allison called together the other nine time-travelers, and the fourteen officers gathered in the Briefing Room. Cobalt and Illumina sat on their haunches near the table, and watched as each officer entered. They would receive the expected double-take from whatever person it happened to be, then the person would slowly sit down and watch the dragons out of the corner of their eyes. 

Once all of the officers were present, Allison stood up. "First thing's first. It feels really good to be back home." She glanced over at Damian and he shook his head a little. She nodded back. "And now, down to business. I'm sure you're all dying to know where we went and why exactly there are two dragons sitting right here." She sat down, and Illumina and Cobalt stood up and moved closer to the table. 

"I am Cobalt," Cobalt introduced himself. "This is Illumina. We are both dragons of K'ti'ma. The dragons of K'ti'ma were created by what you used to call the Force , and have been around for many millennia. When one of us is born with the right mix of mental and physical characteristics, we may be chosen to mentally bond with someone strong in the Force. We who are chosen will have black eyes, which is an easy way of telling us apart from the other, crystalline-eyed dragons. Our kind has been in contact with the human race before, but over the last few thousand years we have lost contact. Over time, your kind has dismissed such tales as fantasy, but your ancestors who colonized Earth knew this to be true." 

Illumina picked up on the narrative. "Your planet Earth was colonized by a race of humans from another galaxy. Our planet and its system, K'ti'ma, were also moved via the Force to this 'Milky Way' galaxy when the humans also moved. Your planet was hit by an ice age, which erased the knowledge of the dragons of K'ti'ma, as well as all the technology your kind had invented. Since then, our kind has waited for someone to rediscover our planet and take their place as a _padmiri_ of a chosen dragon. Cobalt and I are honored to have Allison and Damian as our _padmiri_s. We know all that they know, and vice versa. It is our way." 

Jessie raised a hand like she was in school. "Wait a second. R'IljiN said that Allison was the only one who could still see the future, so how does Star Wars exist? George Lucas should have that gift, too." 

"No, not exactly," Cobalt said. "There still are several humans, young and old, in the 21st century who can see the PAST. George Lucas is one of them. But Allison sees the FUTURE. See the difference?" 

Jessie acknowledged that yes, there was a considerable difference, and that she understood. 

By this time, Cobalt and Illumina had circled the entire Briefing Room table once, and then they returned to where they were before they had begun speaking. 

Allison began again. "The entire month that Damian and I were missing, the dragons of K'ti'ma put us in a dream-like state in order to teach us certain things. Apparently, this is also to prepare us for the event that R'IljiN told us about. He also mentioned the Azure and the Crystal." She waved her hand in the direction of the two dragons. "The Azure and the Crystal are Cobalt and Illumina. But I can definitely understand why they have to be with us. I had Steve scan them and compile a medical report." She nodded at the Chief Medical Officer, and he pulled out a padd. 

"Both of the dragons have the same basic physiology," he began. "They have thick skulls, and a strong spine connected right at the base of their skull that would allow them to ram through almost anything without being hurt at all. Their claws and horns have some kind of titanium in them, and they have a second layer of scales which is practically indestructible, aside from exposure to extremely acidic compounds or the full power of a starship's phasers on overload. They both have the ability to produce their own acid, which can injure or kill one of their own kind if their body chemistry is even slightly different." He put the padd down and looked up, a slight smile tugging at the side of his mouth. "It's a good thing they're on OUR side, because I'd hate to have to patch you all up!" he said, and everyone laughed. 

Cobalt immediately took it upon himself to say, "I am dragon, hear me roar!" and beat on his chest like Tarzan. 

After that, the tension in the room decreased quite a bit, and the other officers felt mostly comfortable around the dragons. However, Karin and Cheryl were a bit annoyed that the two dragons couldn't pronounce their names right. They had already started calling Karin "Karn", and now Cheryl was being called "Chell." Damian seemed to think it was because they had the letter "r" in the middle of their names, and those names seemed to be rather hard for the dragons to get their tongues around. 

However, after a few hours had passed, the ship simply had to resume normal functions. Damian and Allison, accompanied by their respective dragons, went to their quarters to change into their uniforms, while the other twelve time-travelers resumed their normal duties. 

While in her quarters, Allison set up a place for Cobalt to sleep and recorded her account of the detour to K'ti'ma, and then sent the recording off to StarFleet Command with a request for shoreleave. The answer came back almost immediately. Shoreleave was granted, on any planet of the Captain's choosing. 

Grinning to herself, Allison sent up a message to the bridge, ordering a course change. 

  
  
Yes folks, that's right, I _UPDATED_! *has a heart attack from sheer shock*

Seriously, though, it's been over eight months. ^_^;;; Oops. Thank you all for being patient with me, and expect to see chapter eleven just around the riverbend! (Argh, stupid CD...that song just HAD to be playing while I was typing...) 


	11. Shoreleave

**Chapter Eleven - Shoreleave**  
"Haven't you ever heard of the word 'saddle'?" Jessie asked.

A few of the time-travelers were gathered on the top of a cliff. The breeze was warm and seemed to go upward. Of course, that was what the amusement park planet was for: giving a person exactly what they want. Allison, Damian, and the two dragons wanted to test out some wings. 

Jessie, Karin, Steve, and Kat stood off to the left. Monica, Cheryl, Sam, and Kristian were on the right. The two bronze dragons and their Vulcan _padmiri_s were in the middle, at the edge of the cliff. 

"Oh, come on," Allison said, lightly springing into the air and landing squarely on Cobalt's back. "Cobalt won't let me fall. Besides, a saddle would take too long to make." 

"Precisely," Illumina said as Damian climbed up onto her back. 

Both the dragons had synthrope loosely wrapped around their necks. The Vulcan officers would use it to stay on their respective dragon's back while in the air. 

"What makes you so sure you can fly on them, anyway?" Monica asked. 

"The Dream showed us," Cobalt answered simply. 

Allison ignored the other officers and turned to Damian instead. "You ready?" 

"Not really, but I guess this is as close as I'll ever get." 

"Don't worry, Damian," Illumina added helpfully. "I won't let you fall. Just hold on tight and you'll be fine. Just don't snap the synthrope." 

"Oh, I just know I'll have to patch at least one of you guys up..." Steve muttered. The dragons grinned, and then crouched down closer to the ground. 

Allison and Damian tightened their grips on the synthrope and leaned as far down on their dragons' necks as was possible, so the thick neck ridges wouldn't hurt them as the dragons would begin their leap upward. 

Cobalt and Illumina seemed to compact their bodies, becoming two solid masses of muscle. They extended their wings to nearly a forty-two foot wingspan. Their hind claws dug into the rocks as their forepaws were clenched tightly to their chests. The officers on the ground took this as a hint to move back. 

And it was a good thing they did. As if from an unseen signal, both dragons leaped skyward so fast that they became nothing but two bronze blurs, streaking toward the sky. The two Vulcans desperately clung to the synthrope as the dragons swept their wings downward, increasing their speed and nearly doubling it. 

After a few seconds of ascension, though it seemed like an eternity, the dragons leveled off their flight near the bottom of a few clouds. 

"That was COOL!" 

Damian finally opened his eyes at Allison's gleeful shout, and the first thing he saw was bronze scales. He moved his head over to see past Illumina's neck, and saw the ground far below. "...eep!" 

Illumina's amusement swiftly became obvious. _Are you afraid of heights?_ she asked him telepathically. 

"No, I'm afraid of depths." 

"Depths?" Allison called over from a few yards away, obviously having heard his quote. 

"It's not what's up here that's going to hurt me, it's what's down there." Allison's amusement was also clear through the Bond as he said that. "And...weren't you afraid of heights, way back when?" 

She looked over at him and grinned. _Hey, it's been fifteen years,_ her voice said in his head, startling him. _Gimme a break. I've been places where I've learned to deal with heights, thankfully._

_How are you doing that?_ he thought back toward her, not expecting a reply. 

_Same way you are!_ she shot back. _It's called a Bond . I'm sure you know what THAT means._

_Of course I do!_

Cobalt abruptly went into a dive, spilling air from his wings and spiraling down toward the ground in what seemed to be a tailspin. However, when he came within a few yards of the cliff, he opened his wings again and bolted skyward again without even one flap of his wings. Illumina instantly took this as a challenge, and she dove to intercept. 

"Oh, I think I'm gonna be sick!" 

~~~~~~~

After a few minutes of nothing but flying like a pair of fighter jets, the two dragons rocketed skyward again and came to a relative stop somewhere within the cloud cover. 

Damian looked slightly greener than usual. "Whoo boy...I don't think THAT will be easy to get used to..." 

Allison, on the other hand, looked positively thrilled. "That was AWESOME! Let's do it again!" 

"Oh, no you don't! I've had more than enough for today!" 

She glanced over at him and chuckled. "What, are you getting airsick or something?" 

"Probably..." 

"Oh, fine. You and Illumina head back down. Cobalt and I are gonna fool around a bit more." At her words, Cobalt flew slightly closer to Illumina. Allison reached over and wrapped two of her fingers around two of his. "I'll be okay, Deletham . Don't freak out or anything." Letting go, she and Cobalt took a downward plunge from the cloud cover. Illumina began a slow spiral down towards the cliff, coasting on the warm breeze. 

Allison grinned as the breeze blew her hair around. "What say we test out your aerial battle capabilities?" she asked the bronze dragon. 

"Sounds good to me. What do you have in mind?" 

On cue, a dozen Orion atmospheric fighters blazed into view. The needle-like ships zipped around then, weapons charging. 

"A challenge!" Cobalt said, amused. "This, I like. Hang ten, we're going in!" 

~~~~~~~

Illumina landed on the ledge with not as much as a thud. Damian hopped off and unwrapped the synthrope from the dragon's neck. He rubbed her eye ridge and patted her neck. "Thanks for the ride," he said. 

"My privilege," Illumina responded, ebony eyes glinting amusement. 

"Where's Ael?" Jessie demanded nervously. 

Damian only looked up at the bronze speck in the sky, surrounded by several green-silver specks. He shook his head, exasperated. _Will you ever stop finding trouble?_ he sent up to the captain. 

_Not on your life!_ she sent back, laughing mentally. And then Cobalt dove and twisted between fighters, lobbing acid projectiles at the mini ships. Damian caught a sense of excitement from them both, and smiled as he saw five of the fighters explode under the onslaught. 

_Nice aim!_ he commented. 

_Thank you, sir Damos!_ she answered immediately, and she sent a mental picture of herself saluting. He suppressed a laugh, and Jessie glanced over at him with an odd expression on her face. He just shrugged in response. 

Within five minutes, all the Orion fighters were smoldering wrecks in the cliffside. Cobalt buzzed the officers once, then came down for a slower landing on the edge of the rock. Both dragon and _padmiri_ were smiling as Allison vaulted off the bronze dragon's back. "Well, that was a new one on me!" she laughed, and Cobalt rumbled in agreement. The Vulcan captain untied the synthrope from Cobalt's neck, tossing it to the side. It vanished with a slight slurping sound into one of the planetary vents. No one really noticed. 

Cobalt scratched at the scales on his arm. "Blasted alien wind...it itches like crazy." 

Allison lightly smacked him on the shoulder. "Oh, put up and shut up. It could be worse." 

"True." 

Allison looked over at Damian and Illumina, who simultaneously attempted to look disinterested and innocent. "Well, whaddya want to do now?" 

Damian shrugged. "Whatever you want, Ael-kam." 

Allison stared at him. _Baka! They don't know yet!_

Damian winced. _Oops...oh well, might as well make the best of it._

Jessie and Karin stared at the two in disbelief. Both Vulcans shot strangely smug looks in their direction that clearly said "say one word and you're dead meat." 

The other nearby officers exchanged confused glances, but everything became clear a moment later when, in total disregard of their audience, the two Vulcan officers touched their fingers together in a traditional Vulcan husband-and-wife sign. 

Allison smirked. "Oh, did we forget to tell you? Damian and I are Bonded now." 

"Exactly," Damian added enthusiastically, and the two shared a kiss in front of the entire group. Finally coming up for air, they continued to ignore the rest of the officers. "Well, shall we go find something better to do?" Damian suggested. 

"Sounds good to me." Sending one last grin to the others, she catapulted onto Cobalt's back and grabbed onto his neck ridge. Damian did the same with Illumina, and the two were off like they'd been shot from a cannon. 

"Um..." Sam said, still staring in the direction the two Vulcans had taken. The others were equally stunned. 

The silence was finally broken by Jessie's disbelieving exclamation. 

"Why doesn't anyone TELL us these things?!" 

  
***Cackles evilly* And there you have it folks, it's official! I'm married at the age of sixteen! (Actually, I think I was 15 when I wrote this way back when I was trying to write far ahead of myself, but I digress. The story-Ael is in her 30s anyhow.)**

Anyhow, as you can see, this chapter was full of nothing but fluff. Note to self: remember to clean out the lint trap next time. Oh look, some foreshadowing got caught in with the humor! A few fragments, anyway. Let's see if there are any eagle-eyed observers (or anyone I've shared my entire plot plan or written chapters with, but I'm not naming any names DAMIAN :D) who can spot 'em. If not, feel free to just review and tell me that I should forget trying to train for professional author and become a slapstick comedian. 


	12. The Circus Is In Town

**Chapter Twelve - The Circus Is In Town**  
Three months after Allison and Damian publicly announced their marriage, things had settled into a more comfortable routine. Damian had been promoted to Lieutenant-Commander, and he shared quarters with Allison and the two dragons. Karin, Sam, Kat, and Cheryl were also promoted to Lieutenant-Commander.

That particular day, Damian and Allison could be found in the midst of a sparring match in the _Yel'Hal-tor_'s massive gym. Only a few crewpersons were in the gym at the time, so the two Vulcans were immensely enjoying themselves.

The two Vulcans circled each other, waiting for the right time to strike. The heat of Vulcan itself seemed to hang in the air, and the stench of ancient smoke wafted between them.

Damian darted in, hoping to get a quick strike. His hand arced down toward Allison's shoulder to deliver a fight-ending nerve pinch...

And abruptly he found himself soaring through the air, and before he could react he slammed into the opposite wall, approximately thirty feet away from where he had been and in the opposite direction to boot. He slid down to the floor, dazed. "Ouch. Not again."

Allison stepped over and helped him up. He rubbed the back of his head. "I'm never going to get this right," he complained.

"Oh, you just need to be patient," Allison said.

The two had been at it for several weeks now. Allison was trying to teach Damian a form of Vulcan self-defense, but the Aussie just couldn't figure out how to keep from being thrown yet. On the other hand, both of them had become quite good at sword dueling, particularly with their newly-constructed lightsabers.

During the Dream, the dragons of K'ti'ma had trained both in the Jedi way. With the teachings, they had learned some basic Force skills and how to build a lightsaber. Allison had actually built two, and kept them in specially-designed, easy-to-reach holsters on her forearms. The lightsaber on her left was blue-bladed, and the one on the right was green. Damian had also built two, and used a similar design for his holsters. Both blades were purple.

So far, they hadn't had to use them on any setting stronger than the practice setting. But they both knew that the time would come, eventually.

"Hey, you're doing better," Cobalt remarked from across the room. "At least you lasted a few seconds longer this time."

"Yeah, bringing the total time up to...what, ten seconds?" Illumina shot back, grinning at her _padmiri_ as she did so.

Damian threw a towel at her. The bronze dragon lightly skipped out of the way and stuck her tongue out at him. He shook his head and chuckled a little. "I'm beat. Why don't we go get something to eat before our secondary shift?"

"Sounds good to me," Allison agreed.

~~~~~~~

The mess hall was slightly more crowded than the gym. Allison and Damian had to wait in a short line to get their food, but the wait wasn't too long. Allison synthesized an exotic shrimp and lobster platter with cheese biscuits and Sobe Dragon, while Damian got an Australian meat pie and a salad with a glass of milk to drink. Illumina and Cobalt weren't particularly hungry at the time, so they headed back to their shared quarters to wait for the two officers.

As the pair headed toward a table in the back, they passed by Karin. The half-Romulan was busy enjoying a plate of pasta, with no meat of course. She looked up as they walked by.

"You two are weird," she commented. "Carnivorous Vulcans."

"And you're a vegetarian Romulan," Allison replied immediately. "We're all one big freak-of-nature family."

"Yeah, it shows."

Allison snorted in amusement, and then continued on to their targeted table. Sitting down, the two dug into their meal almost immediately.

"So, anything interesting happen at Comms lately?" Allison asked Damian, then took a swig of the Sobe.

"Not really, except it seems the Admiralty is getting a bit nervous about us," he answered. He winked. "Evidently dragons and lightsabers make them a bit uneasy, especially in the hands of one of Kirk's relatives and her husband."

"Yeah, we would," she commented, grinning. "Seems to me that Admiral Fitzpatrick really doesn't like me. I wonder why that is. Well, the Admiralty will go to hell before I do what they want me to do. And the best part is, they know it, too."

"I don't really get it. What's so bad about the big brass?" Damian asked.

"Well, as far as I care, they're fairly incompetent. They don't give a care about the feelings and personal beliefs of those under their command. Hell, they even made us promise not to interfere with the timeline. They don't seem to get that, just by our presence, we're royally screwing the timeline." She grinned and sent him a telepathic message. _So forget the brass, we're gonna blow their little scheme to hell!_

~~~~~~~

Delta shift started fairly calmly, with the now-familiar change of bridge staff as personnel were released from duty as their replacements arrived. Damian took his place at the Comms console, nodding to Felsinger as the ensign turned the station over to him. Allison sat down in the command chair, and noticed that Cheryl and Monica were already at the helm/nav station. Kristian looked up from the Science console as the pair of Vulcans entered, smiling slightly.

"Anything important happen last shift?" Allison asked.

"Well, nothing much happened, except Ensign Malikan finally beat Lia at arm-wrestling," Kristian said, handing her a padd. "Other than that, it's pretty much been quiet up here. Oh yes, and Admiral Morrow called up yelling about some overdue reports."

Allison read over the padd as she spoke. "Sounds like a normal day, then. Thank you, Commander."

~~~~~~~

Only a few minutes passed before Damian noticed something odd. Scanning through the comm channels, he'd caught a snatch of an advertisement. Going back, he began to listen.

"Captain?" he called after a minute. "I think you'd better hear this."

She was instantly at his shoulder. "What is it?"

Damian called up the ad onto the speakers. "Listen to this."

_*-the Quadracil Zoo recieved this new addition to their ranks yesterday at 1250 Drenat main time. The creature seems to be slightly sentient, but all it has been able to communicate is that it is something called a dragnon of Kitimiey. No one knows what exactly that may mean. In other news-*_

Damian turned it off and swiveled his chair so that he faced Allison. "Sounds like they can't pronounce it right, but that's definitely a dragon of K'ti'ma," he said.

"Where did that signal originate?" Allison asked. The entire bridge was now listening in, all joking put aside at the mention of an imprisoned dragon.

Damian called up the planet on the main viewscreen. "Deilar VIII, in the Khimto sector. It's class M, with a spacefaring felinoid race that are known for collecting various specimens from different planets."

"Sort of like in The Eye Of The Beholder," Allison mused, thinking out loud. "Well, if there is a dragon in their zoo, we can't let them keep it. Cheryl, set a course for Deilar VIII, Warp Seven."

"Aye sir!"

~~~~~~~

The _Yel'Hal-tor_ pulled into orbit around the eighth planet of the Deilar system after only a few hours. A pair of sleek, needle-shaped ships appeared and zipped around the outer hull. If it was possible for a spaceship to look nervous, they managed it.

"They're hailing us," Damian said.

"On screen," Allison ordered.

The main viewscreen shimmered, and the image of Deilar VIII was replaced by a felinoid face. The Dei looked like a Terran tiger, with white primary fur and rainbow-colored stripes. Its eyes were a luminous blue.

"This is Krimov Mrelar of the Deilar Space Authorities," the Dei said, and the voice was feminine. "We do not recognize your ship. Identify yourselves."

"Mrelar," Allison addressed the Dei, standing up, "I am Captain Ael of this starship, the _Yel'Hal-tor_. We are merely visiting your planet on a routine survey mission for our government. Will you allow us to carry out our duties?"

"I will report to my superiors and then give you an answer," Mrelar said, and then cut the channel. Her image was replaced with that of the planet again.

Kristian raised an eyebrow. "Well, THAT was polite."

"Oh, give them a break. They don't even really know who we are," Allison said. "They're not used to dealing with humanoids."

The Dei came back onscreen a few minutes later. "Your request for visitation has been accepted," Krimov Mrelar said. "You may send down your crewpersons as you wish, but do not interfere with our way of life nor take that which does not belong to you."

"Understood," Allison acknowledged. "Thank you. _Yel'Hal-tor_ out." Damian cut the channel, and Allison turned to face her crew. "Damian, call Jessie and Steve to the transporter room and then get down there yourself. I'll get Cobalt and Illumina."

~~~~~~~

The group materialized in the midst of a busy metropolis. Cobalt and Illumina looked around curiously, ignoring the stares of various Dei. Allison took advantage of the situation and walked up to a nearby pair of Dei. "Excuse me...I'm Captain Ael of the starship _Yel'Hal-tor_. Could you be so kind as to point us in the direction of the Quadracil Zoo?"

The larger of the two aliens, a female, pointed wordlessly down a nearby street. Her companion was a bit more descriptive. "It is a very short distance away. You will not fail to see the sign."

Allison respectfully bowed. "Many thanks, gentlebeings." Gathering her officers with a glance and the dragons with a mental nudge, she started off down the street in the direction the Dei had indicated.

_Gentlebeings?_ Damian inquired through their Bond. _Where in space did you pick THAT up?_

_It was in a few books, okay?_ she sent back. _Besides, it's the only thing I could think of. Now let's get to that zoo and rescue that dragon already._

Your wish is my command, wife.

  
**Response to reviews:** (figured I'd better get in the habit)

wingnut: Indeed it is.

Dark Jedi Princess: You think YOUR Comcast is being a snit?

Mistoffelees: That I did. School, ack, it is evil. Kill it!

Tavia: Thanks, and as it just so happens, I have. I agree, it did sound very Pernese, although I didn't mean it to. High-five for Pern! ^_^ Foreshadowing isn't quite finished yet, the events alluded to in chapter 11 will be revealed a bit later. Patience, young Padawan.

Damos no Yami: As well you should. :P

  
**Everyone else participating:**  
I need your ages in 2011, if nothing else. And photos. Come on, don't do this to me. 


	13. Dragons

Chapter Thirteen – Dragons  
  
The dragon was small, and very young. It peered down at the group through a group of leaves, and then slowly dropped from the tree. It seemed hesitant and fearful, but gradually approached.  
  
Allison watched it. The dragon was a few days old, at best. Its scales were an emerald color, and its horns were only about an inch long. Crystalline eyes studied the officers from behind the force field.  
  
Damian glanced at Allison, and she half-closed her eyes and reached out to the dragon with her mind. 'Hello,' she said, trying to keep her "tone" friendly. 'I'm Allison, padmiri of Cobalt. Who are you?'  
  
"I am Jade," the dragon spoke up, and Damian grinned. Success! The dragon's voice was high and silvery, and very feminine. She eyed the two larger dragons nervously. "Are you going to help me?"  
  
"We will do what we can," Allison replied. She motioned Steve forward. "Scan her and see if they've been treating her properly."  
  
The chief medical officer complied, running a tricorder in front of the emerald dragon and compiling a list of her stats. He quickly read it over. "Nothing wrong with her, Captain. But she hasn't been here for long."  
  
"How were you captured?" Jessie asked.  
  
"I had just hatched," Jade said, idly scratching the dust with her hind talons. "I was curious of them but I was also afraid. Before I could decide what to do, I was here."  
  
"Well, you won't be here for long. I'll be back in five minutes," Allison promised. She and Cobalt headed for a nearby employee. While the sight of a large bronze dragon distracted the poor Dei, Allison confiscated his remote control without him being aware of it. After getting the "key," Allison stood a short distance away while Cobalt screamed out a wordless challenge. She watched in amusement as every nearby alien fled, and the poor Dei employee scrambled away as fast as he could, tripping over his own tail in his hurry to escape. After the area was completely deserted, Allison walked back to Jade's cage.  
  
"Piece of cake," she commented, holding up the remote and hitting a green button. The forcefield shimmered and vanished.  
  
Damian tapped his commbadge. "Beresford to Yel'Hal-tor. Seven to beam up."  
  
With a flurry of golden sparkles, the four officers and three dragons vanished into thin air.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
It took only a few minutes to evade angry Dei leaders and escape to Federation territory. The Dei didn't know what government the Yel'Hal-tor crew belonged to, so no charges were able to be filed. The officers had gotten away with the "theft."  
  
Jade was an immediate favorite of the crew. She wasn't tall and intimidating like Cobalt and Illumina, and she was a very good listener. The only problem was, nearly everything was capable of scaring her at least once. The emerald dragon soon developed a habit of following Karin, Jessie, or Nick whenever they were nearby. Karin was her favorite person, however.  
  
"And this is what you do all day, Karn?" Jade asked, looking around Sickbay. "It must be scary sometimes."  
  
"It is," Karin agreed. "Although I'm sure you don't want the gory details."  
  
Jade stuck out her tongue in disgust. "That's a gross phrase."  
  
Karin chuckled. "Right. Sorry."  
  
Steve came out of his office and noticed the two. "Hey, you conducting a tour or something?" He laughed at the guilty looks on their faces. "It's okay, just make sure you don't touch anything, Jade. I like to know where my equipment is. I also like it intact."  
  
"Yes sir," Jade answered, her neck ridge ruffling a little in uncertainty. "Karn, let's go see the Bridge," she suggested.  
  
Karin smiled, sending a "Nyeer!" look at Steve over her shoulder. "All right, Jade. But the same rules apply there as in Sickbay: don't touch anything, don't distract anyone, and try to remember that none of the flashing lights are going to hurt you."  
  
Steve chuckled to himself as he saw Jade and Karin head out the doors. "Kids these days."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Over the next few weeks, life on the ship settled into a comfortable routine. Allison and Damian resumed their daily sparring bouts in the gymnasium. Jessie occasionally worked out with her bat'leth against any crew member willing to challenge her. Cobalt and Illumina wandered freely around the ship, checking on ship's operations occasionally and frequently chatting with personnel. Jade learned how to help out in Sickbay, and as a result stayed near Karin quite often. StarFleet Command finally shushed up about the entire incident, frustrated at their inability to prevent this new captain from doing what was well within her perogative as starship commander. In other words, things were mostly back to normal.  
  
One morning, there was a change.  
  
Allison first became aware something was amiss when a loud crashing noise startled her out of sleep. She opened her eyes and listened for the noise again.  
  
It came, as expected, but this time it was accompanied by an odd sense along her telepathic bond with Cobalt. She nudged Damian, awakening him and getting him to loosen his grip on her. The two Vulcans glanced at each other, then got out of bed and hurried to the main living area of their quarters.  
  
Cobalt was furiously scratching at his head, occasionally crashing into something as he stumbled around the room. Illumina was staring at him, black eyes unreadable, but both Vulcans could pick up a sense of wonder from the female dragon.  
  
"Cobalt, stop it!" Allison said, stepping forward and trying to grab hold of the dragon's forepaws. His tail came out of nowhere and nearly swept her legs out from under her. "Cobalt! You're going to hurt yourself, now stop it!"  
  
Cobalt ignored her. The need to tear at his skin was drowning out everything else. His ebony claws slashed deep into the scales, and he cried out at first in pain, then it slowly transformed into one of amazement and joy. Dropping to all fours, he began to furiously shake his entire body. Powdery bronze scales flew everywhere, creating a dull russet cloud that obscured the dragon from sight.  
  
And then the dust settled, and Cobalt sat in the middle of the room, powerful and proud and utterly beautiful. "Oh, YES! Who da maaan?" he shouted, ignoring the mess he had created and bounding over to hug Allison.  
  
Illumina, who had been watching the proceedings from the corner of the room, suddenly gasped and scratched at her own scales. Damian's eyes widened in awe as the other dragon also began the process, without the running-into-everything part.  
  
That room was not going to be clean for a long while.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Alpha shift began. Kristian took the science station, nodding to the previous shift's officer who was just leaving that station. Lia and May arrived together, as usual, and began to check their consoles for updates on course and speed of the mighty ship. Jessie was already at the Security console, double-checking safeties and automatic systems.  
  
The turbolift doors swooshed open right on schedule, and there was the sound of two pairs of boots on carpet, accompanied by the chiming of dragon scales. Kristian turned around to greet his commanding officer and her Bondmate, and stopped in utter surprise.  
  
Cobalt appeared to be encased in shimmering sapphire scales. Dark blue ran across his back and wings, and gradually lightened to a cerulean blue and then a blue-green color on his belly that even ranged into the yellow-green range. His pitch-black eyes and horns glittered, and his talons caught every bit of light that the bridge lights gave off. His wing membranes and neck ridge were nearly transluscent, shimmering under the lights. Incredibly well-honed muscles rippled under his skin, demonstrating ultimate grace and power.  
  
Illumina, on the other hand, looked as if she were forged from a diamond. Her entire body was covered in shiny, faintly cyan scales that somehow weren't transparent enough to reveal her internal organs. Her black horns and ebony eyes seemed to scoop up all light and fling it back at observers. Her claws reflected the bridge lights, creating tiny rays of light that shot in every direction. Her wings almost looked as if they were made of glass, and her neck ridge appeared to be a smooth-faced jewel. At every step, muscles stretched and coiled, exposing her strength and fluid movements.  
  
Allison and Damian grinned at the expressions of the bridge crew as the two dragons preened and posed dramatically. "As you were," Allison said at last, and the officers slowly shared amazed glances and went back to their tasks, occasionally shooting a glance in the direction of the newly-shed dragons.  
  
Allison began to hum a tune to herself as she took her place in the command chair. The song was "Treasure Of You," causing Cobalt to grin in amusement. Illumina and Damian supressed twin snickers, and Damian sent along a telepathic message to his Bondmate. 'A message, Ael?'  
  
She sent back the image of herself sticking her tongue out at him. 'You hush, Deletham.'  
  
'Yes, ma'am!' he quipped.  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
Yes, it's been horribly long since I've updated anything, but here we go again! STAR TREKKIES COMETH! About three more chapters and an epilogue to go, and then we start in on book #3: Kaunshuk, where we get into the stuff that these first two books have just been setting up for. ^_~  
  
Ad G: Yes, this is a trilogy as you can see. I normally hate expository and "Setting up" stuff, but this one I've having fun with. All will be made clear in book 3.  
  
Washu/Transformon: I've already written a fair bit into book three, but I'll see what I can do. You're going to have lots of fun hobnobbing with...whoops, can't say....in book three. ;) Patience, young Padawan.  
  
Jedi Takeru: Thanks for the suggestion, but I don't need any more ships.  
  
Super Hurricane: Ah, the great mysteries of the universe. ^_~ Actually Damian suggested it back when we barely knew each other, so we spent a good five months getting that idea wrapped around our brains before I actually wrote it. We did it mostly for shock value. :P It appears we succeeded.  
  
Mistoffelees: Yep, this is kind of an obscure canon crossover between Star Wars and Star Trek. See whatever chapter it was where we came back with dragons for more details. :P  
  
Dark Jedi Princess: Yes, and here be ANOTHER new chapter! :P Happy readings, I hope? 


	14. Krleiuvans

A/N: Bicycle is a brand of playing cards.

**Chapter Fourteen – Krleiuvans**

Late into the night, four officers sat around a circular table. A deck of playing cards was on the table near the center, and each officer had a stack of plastic chips next to them. A few of the chips were in the middle of the board, and each person studied the five cards in their hands.

"I'll see your five and raise you ten," Damian said at last, dropping a few chips in the pile.

Karin threw in ten more chips, but didn't make another raise. Sam decided to fold, and put her cards face-down in front of her. Allison smiled enigmatically over her cards, and tossed in a few extra poker chips. "I'll raise you fifteen," she said.

Karin made a noise of protest, and also folded. Damian dropped fifteen more chips into the pile. "All right, Ael, here's to your fifteen. Show 'em."

With that, she grinned and dropped her cards on the table. Three aces and two kings; a full house.

Damian groaned, and all but threw his hand of cards down. Two pair. "How do you bloody DO that?" he muttered.

"Practice, practice, practice," the captain quipped as she scooped up the pile of chips and dragged them to her side of the table. She gathered up the cards and began to shuffle. Once she was satisfied with the randomization, she dealt five cards to each of them. Then she put the deck to the side, and studied her hand. It was a straight.

Karin threw in a card and drew another, and then frowned for a moment. Sam kept her hand, apparently satisfied with whatever she had gotten. Damian, on the other hand, glanced innocently over at Allison. The captain felt him poking into her mind, trying to find out what hand she had.

"Hey Damian," Allison said, pretending she hadn't noticed. "I've got a riddle for you. The police get called to investigate a death. The man was found dead, surrounded by fifty-three bicycles. How did he die?"

With a subtle yank of the Force, Allison nonchalantly pulled his chair out from underneath him. With a yelp, he crashed to the carpet and his cards went flying. "Answer: he was caught cheating at poker!" she declared, dodging and laughing as he threw a poker chip at her.

Karin and Sam laughed at the outraged look on the Lieutenant-Commander's face. Damian glared at them for a good ten seconds, then gave up and began laughing too. "Okay, I admit it, I tried to cheat. I thought you wouldn't notice."

"Oh, ye of little faith," Allison immediately replied, and offered him a hand up. He took it, and the two Vulcans exchanged a brief mental hug. "I think we should call it a night."

"Aww, but we were having fun," Karin complained, but she tossed her cards onto the table, revealing a hand with ace high nothing. "And I was so close," she joked.

Sam also threw her cards onto the table. She had a straight, but her highest card was a ten whereas Allison's highest card was a King. "I give," she agreed. "It's a bit late for poker, anyway."

Allison elbowed her in the ribs. "Unless you can play with Weeeeeesleeeeeey," she teased. "You got a crush on the Crusher!"

Sam good-naturedly smacked her older cousin in the arm. "You're never going to let me forget about that, are you?"

"Nope!"

"Didn't think so!"

Damian's cards were still scattered around the floor, but they only had one pair of anything. Allison grinned and waved her cards, showing everyone her winning hand. "Right. Let's get some sleep, people. Tomorrow's almost here already."

The next morning, The _Yel'Hal-tor_ received a commcall from StarFleet headquarters, directing the ship and her crew to the planet Krleiuv in the Swoi sector. The planet's native species, Krleiuvans, were a reptilian humanoid race that vaguely resembled dinosaurs. The majority ethnic race was greenish-blue in color, and they were involved in a campaign against the reddish-colored minority group. The majority, called the Tor, wanted the minority, called the Shal, banished to their most forbidding continent after a group of Shal had been caught in a scandal against the government. As the planet was being considered for Federation membership, StarFleet was dispatching the _Yel'Hal-tor_ to Krleiuv and Captain Danks was to serve as diplomatic mediator in the fiasco.

"Am I suddenly the galaxy's most requested diplomat or something?" Allison muttered under her breath as she ordered a course change. "I swear, they all want me to cure plagues or feed the five thousand."

"Oh, surely it can't be THAT hard," Cobalt mused out loud. The sapphire dragon was calmly sitting on his haunches next to her chair, occasionally spouting off a smart remark into the boring old routine of alpha watch. His humorous tendencies had toned down slightly after he had shed his skin, maturing and learning exactly what to say and when to say it. But even so, his link with Allison kept his practical joker side close nearby, as nearly a second nature to both of them. "It's just a little rebellion. No biggie. So, what's our ETA, anyway?"

"Approximately twenty-eight hours," Lia immediately responded. The bridge crew had long since become accustomed to the dragons' presences, and Allison had given orders that until further notice, the two dragons held the same ranks and privileges of their respective _padmiri_s. Any order given by Cobalt, therefore, would be as if Allison had given the order instead. StarFleet Command, of course, would not necessarily acknowledge that authority, but then again they didn't need to know about that.

Allison had been wary of StarFleet Command ever since her first day as a Vulcan. In turn, that careful caution had been shared with her Bondmate, his dragon, and her own dragon. There was just something about the Admiralty that rubbed her the wrong way, and after awhile she suspected that it was genetic, considering Captain Kirk's track record. It was as if StarFleet Command consisted of naive people only, who couldn't see the opportunities in front of them.

Still, for the moment they were her superiors, and it might be a good idea to at least act as if she was obeying orders.

Allison abruptly stood. "I'll be down in the gym. Inform me immediately if anything comes up." As she stepped up to the turbolift, Cobalt smoothly rose and also entered the enlarged elevator. "Kristian, you have the conn," Cobalt called over his shoulder.

"Aye, sirs."

Since the discovery of the dragons of K'ti'ma, Allison and Damian had been practicing their newfound Jedi skills almost constantly, and after the first month or so they had both taken on a few apprentices. Allison was in the midst of training Kristian, May, Karin, and Sam. Damian, on the other hand, was training Michael, Monica, and Cheryl. The nine officers met regularly to practice their lightsaber techniques, and at random intervals a new lesson would be brought forth.

As Allison entered the gymnasium, she mentally reached out through the master-padawan training bond she shared with her four apprentices. _Karin, Turtle, would you two mind joining me in the gymnasium? Kristian, May, you two can join us at the end of your shifts._

Karin and Sam acknowledged the summons, and Kristian and May also sent affirmative answers. After a few minutes, the two Romulans entered the room. Cobalt, who was reclining on a special branch-like couch that had been put in just for him, lazily waved at the duo, who saluted in response.

It had been scientifically proven several years earlier, during an incident with a Romulan woman called Ael i-Mhiessan t'Rllaillieu, that Romulans (or Rihannsu, as they preferred to be called) could learn Vulcan mental disciplines either through mind-meld or lots of patience. As patience was the Jedi code itself, and because Samantha and Karin both preferred traditional Jedi style, the two Rihannsu had decided to learn such powers under Allison's supervision. During Allison's Dream, the dragons of K'ti'ma had shown to her that telepathy and all related powers were merely fueled by the Force, and most telepathic species were capable of so much more but would never get the chance to be trained properly. Therefore, it stood to reason that the Rihannsu, descended from the telepathic Vulcans, would also be fairly Force-sensitive but untrained. And half-Rihannsu would also be capable of learning Jedi techniques and skills.

Karin frowned slightly. "Isn't this way off of our normal lesson time? I thought it was still alpha shift."

"It is," Allison replied, but didn't elaborate. Instead, she casually twisted her wrist and fluidly pulled her right-hand lightsaber out in one smooth motion. "I thought that we could use some practice before our next mission. I get the feeling we'll need it. Turtle, would you care to do the honors?"

Sam reached to her belt, grabbed her lightsaber, and activated it. A brightly glowing silver blade sprang from the hilt, hissing and humming in the empty gymnasium.

Allison activated her own lightsaber, a long spear of green elegance. She crossed her blade with her cousin's, and looked her in the eyes. "Remember, don't think. Just feel. Once you have the rhythm, there is nothing to fear from any enemy as long as you remember to listen constantly. The flow of the Force may change without warning. _En guarde_!" With that, she tore her blade away from Sam's and slashed in a butterfly sweep from the left.

Sam's lightsaber came up somewhat slowly, compared to the speed of the green blade, and silver met emerald in a blaze of light. Sam broke away and swung toward Allison's shoulder, but the captain quickly parried and struck again, this time in an age-old Crescent Moon maneuver from the days of the Old Republic. Sam was barely able to sweep the blade aside as it darted in, and then immediately had to block another strike from the left.

Abruptly, Allison lowered her lightsaber and deactivated it. "This isn't working," she grumbled, and then quickly added, "It's not your fault, Sam. I'm just a bit...well, I dunno how to describe it. The Force is practically _tingling_ with a sense of urgency. Can't you feel it?" Sam and Karin both shook their heads. "All right...then let's work on meditation for today."

Meditation was one of Allison's favorite activities. If she ever felt mentally off-balance or disconcerted, a Jedi meditation, even a quick one, tended to orient her quicker than anything she'd ever tried before. Sometimes she had visions, other times she just enjoyed the sensation of reaching out to touch the galaxy.

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, she closed her eyes and reached out to her Bondmate. _Deletham?_

_What is it, Ael?_

_Just making sure you were paying attention. Listen, I'm going to lead Karin and Sam through a complicated meditation for the next hour or so. Can you make sure everything runs smoothly in my absence? If all else fails, come to the gym and get Cobalt. I'm sure he can settle any disputes._

_Will do, Ael. Be careful._ And he sent along a sense of love and joy so great it nearly overwhelmed her.

She smiled, and then turned her focus towards her patiently waiting apprentices. "The first step is to calm your mind. Clear it of all distractions and stray thoughts." Her voice took on an imitating tone, low and slightly rough. "Clear your mind of questions." The Rihannsu giggled at the excellent Yoda impression, and then did as they were told.

The next day, the _U.S.S. Yel'Hal-tor_ pulled into orbit around Krleiuv. The diplomatic landing party consisted of Captain Danks, Lieutenant-Commander Beresford, Lieutenant-Commander Flom, and Lieutenant-Commander Eads. Cobalt and Illumina reluctantly stayed behind on the starship, due to the fact that their presence would probably unnerve the reptilian Krleiuvans.

A group of five Tor were waiting patiently when the four officers materialized on the surface of the planet. The apparent leader of the group, a dinosaur-like male with an aquamarine crest, stepped forward and made a fluid bow, bending his double-jointed arms in a gesture of respect. "Captain Danks and companions, we of Krleiuv welcome you." He straightened, and his crest swayed gently from side to side with the motion. "I am Chief Archyx of the Tor." He gestured to his escorts. "These are my aides: Jinat, a'Mro, Thyle, and Buhds."

"Chief Archyx," Allison responded, inclining her head respectfully. "A pleasure to meet you. These are my assistants: Damian Beresford, Jessie Eads, and Karin Flom." She indicated each officer as she spoke their name. "And I see no reason to introduce myself, for you already know of me."

Chief Archyx's black eyes blinked, and Damian later swore that the creature was laughing inwardly. "Such is the wisdom of your kind. If you would be so kind as to follow me to the Capital Building, we shall begin discussion of our current situation."

The S'abrel Continent was a deceptively peaceful land, with fresh golden grasses and orange trees. The Kreleiuvian buildings were mostly made of a unique purple stone, and more often than not they were made from a single spherical boulder. A large ring-shaped structure arose from the blue fog that swirled along the edge of the tawny grass. That ring opened to a large courtyard, which lay in front of an area protected from the Krleiuv acid rain by an unidentifiable roof structure. That area seemed to serve as a front porch for the Capital Building, which was literally built into the side of a mountain. Inside the massive rock, tunnels and chambers stretched out in all directions.

The Tor led them through the courtyard and into the first chamber of the mountain. A few Krleiuvans stared as the StarFleet officers passed by, but most ignored the group as they entered a large audience chamber.

Chief Archyx stopped and waved a clawed hand at the room. "This is where we conduct our negotiations and business dealings. I trust it is adequate for this discussion?"

"Yes, it is certainly up to the task," Allison assured him. "Shall we begin?"

Chief Archyx explained the situation in more detail over the next few hours. A group of Shal had been swindling top Tor officials out of millions of dollars, using a phony mine as a cover story. The Shal had been caught in the act when a Tor inspector had traced back the mine and found that it didn't really exist. In a rage, the Tor had immediately captured the Shal group and were trying to imprison the rest of the minority race. A rather large group of Shal had fled the major cities and had taken up residence somewhere in the foothills, and they began to carry out small raids on the minor towns over the past few months. Even more recently, the Shal had begun to strike at the middle-sized cities as well.

The Tor had sent a message to StarFleet, asking for assistance in hunting down the rebels. StarFleet Command had responded by sending the _Yel'Hal-tor_ for negotiations on the situation, and they gave specific instructions to observe the situation first, and _then_ begin to persuade the Krleiuvans to make a correct decision.

After Chief Archyx finished his explanation, arrangements were made to contact the leader of the rebel Shal for negotiations on the situation. Allison decided to keep her officers planetside for the night, and they were led to private guest chambers near the top of the mountain tunnels. The rooms had obviously been designed with humanoids in mind, and no one had any problems settling in for the night. Jessie and Karin opted to share a room, leaving the other for Allison and Damian, which was just fine with them.

As the torches began to burn low, signaling nightfall, Damian wrapped an arm around Allison and pulled her close. "Have I ever mentioned how beautiful you look in the dark?" he said sleepily.

She gave him a playful swat. "Yes, you have. Several times."

"Just makin' sure."

"Go to sleep, Deletham."

"Yes, Captain."


	15. Bluffing

**Chapter Fifteen - Bluffing**

The next morning, Damian woke up early. Pausing only to kiss his sleeping Bondmate on the cheek, he dressed and ventured out to the local marketplace.

The marketplace was a large circular group of flat-topped boulders, each boasting a new and exotic collection of items. Turquoise Krleiuvans wandered around, occasionally peering intently at an object before handing something shiny and metallic to a merchant.

Damian browsed the displays, often taking a closer look at an item but never buying anything. Finally his gaze rested on a collection of metal weapons. Walking over, he studied them closely. Picking up a long stylized sword, he made a few practice swipes and then returned it to its place on the table.

"May I be of assistance, sir?" a young aquamarine Krleiuvan merchant asked anxiously.

"Yes, thank you. I'm looking for a gift for my Bondmate." And it was true, because if he forgot Allison's birthday, he wasn't likely to see his own.

The Krleiuvan's ebony eyes seemed to brighten. "Ah, so you are looking for something special. What is your Bondmate's weapon specialty?"

Damian thought about that. Allison loved lightsabers and other swords, but she already had a S'harien1 in addition to her two lightsabers. Better to go with something small, anyway. Easier to carry, easier to conceal. That left small, close-range weapons. Or perhaps something that she could throw. "She would most likely be content with a small, concealable weapon of some sort," he said at last.

With a graceful gesture, the Krleiuvan merchant indicated a display of knives on the right. "I have the finest collection of knives on Krleiuv." He picked up a golden blade, turning it over so the light reflected off the sharp edge. "This is the finest gold fkt'ar knife on the S'abrel Continent. It dates back to..."

Damian listened somewhat as the merchant droned on and on about each item. One knife caught his attention. "What's this one?" he asked, interrupting the Krleiuvan's demonstration. He indicated a diamond-bladed knife, with a sparkling sapphire handle. Amethysts and rubies gleamed on the handgrip, and a single emerald shone with an inner fire on the very end of the handle. Silver and gold strands traced strange patterns across the handle.

The merchant glanced at it. "Ah, that is my prized Gr'loev knife, a rare find. The Gr'loev is made entirely from gemstones and precious metals, and it will not break. This is the only knife of its kind on the entire planet, and I warn you, I will not let it go easily."

Damian simply stared at the knife. "How much?"

"Fifteen-thousand credits."

Inwardly, Damian flinched. _Ouch. That'll hurt my savings._ "Ten-thousand."

"Fourteen," the merchant offered.

"Twelve," he tried again.

"Thirteen-fifty, and that is my final offer," the Krleiuvan said, one claw raised in warning. "Not a credit lower."

"Thirteen-fifty it is," Damian sighed, and reached for his credit pouch. _The things I do for that girl...but it's worth it._ Handing over the credit coins, he picked up the knife and began to walk away.

"Sir, aren't you forgetting something?" Damian blinked as the Krleiuvan pulled out a matching sheath for the knife. The sheath was made of diamond, with gold and silver patterns woven around gemstones. The dinosaur-like alien handed it over, almost reverantly. "The Gr'loev must always have its sheath, for they are the only ones worthy of one another." The black eyes bored into the Vulcan's eyes. "Such as it is with you and your Bondmate. Now go, and enjoy your life with such a woman."

Allison was given a very rude awakening, as the sounds of phaser fire right outside her door became audible. Quickly leaping out of bed, she noted that Damian was gone and she had left all of her weapons back on the ship. She immediately assumed a Vulcan self-defense pose, just as her door was violently blown off its hinges. A trio of red Krleiuvans appeared in the doorway, phasers drawn. "You will come with us willingly, or we shall stun you," the lead Shal announced, waving his phaser threateningly.

Quickly calculating the odds, she decided it would probably be very stupid to try to resist...for the moment. "Very well," she said, covering her real personality with one that was much more Vulcan. Her poker face was already in action. "Take me where you wish."

The Shal "escorted" her to a medium-sized room deeper inside the mountain. Jessie and Karin, both stunned, were already inside and were being guarded by five armored Shal. One of the Tor, a'Mro, was glaring at the Shal from the corner. Her double-jointed arms were held in an elaborately-styled pair of steel handcuffs, and her short muzzle was strapped shut.

Appearing disinterested, she turned to face the Shal who seemed to be the leader. "What is the meaning of this?" she asked.

"Your StarFleet shall never allow us Shal to go free," he said. "We are therefore finding a major advantage in negotiation. We trade places with the Tor, or the Federation loses three officers."

Allison's face was unreadable, but inside her head, her mind was racing at lightspeed. _Three officers...that means they don't know Damian's here. Somewhere._ Focusing her thoughts, she reached out along the Bond. _Deletham?_ Her message was blocked by some kind of wall, and she belatedly realized that the mountain was made of some kind of stone that inhibited psychic energies. _Damn. Guess I'd better start thinking of a way to overpower these guys._

"My ship is in orbit," she warned them. "If you kill us, my crew will know, and they will retaliate."

The Shal waved his phaser dismissively. "It is better to die for a cause than to live in shame without one. We will defend our honor and our innocence of the crime with which we are accused, even if it means becoming...what do you humans say?...martyrs."

Allison cursed silently. _Damn. Nothing worse than a group of aliens with nothing to lose._ To the Shal, she merely raised an eyebrow and remained silent.

Evidently deciding that the conversation was over, the Shal gestured with the tip of his phaser that she should join the other hostages. She did so, but her mind was already searching for a way to escape or overpower the Shal soldiers. _Dammit, Damian, where as you?_

As it turned out, Damian was just outside the mountain at the time. Humming to himself, he entered the massive rocky building, heading for the quarters he had used. He brushed his hand over the Gr'loev knife again, and smiled. _Allison's gonna love this,_ he thought happily to himself. _I wonder if she's awake yet?_

As he turned the last corner, he froze. Pieces of the heavy stone door lay strewn about the corridor, and the main block of the door was actually melted into the wall. There wasn't a single sign of life.

Finally breaking past the paralyzing terror, he bolted forward and leapt through the hole left in the wall. "Allison? ALLISON?" His eyes darted around the room, but all he saw was a few twisted bedsheets next to the bed, and Allison's communicator underneath it.

Swearing like a drunken sailor, Damian ran toward the room that Jessie and Karin had been staying in. It was empty as well, with a few pieces of broken ceramic testifying that whatever had happened, they hadn't given up without a fight.

Forcing himself to go through a Jedi calming technique, he closed his eyes and reached out with the Force for clues. _Ael?_ he sent along the Bond he shared with the captain. But his message was blocked, and he quickly realized that somehow the mountain muted their Bond. Opening his eyes, he sighed in irritation. _Guess I'll have to use the old-fashioned method._ He took out his communicator and flipped it open. "Beresford to _Yel'Hal-tor_."

"_Yel'Hal-tor_ here," Kristian's voice responded. "A bit early for check-in, isn't it?"

"That's because it's not check-in time," Damian growled. "Look, this isn't the time for witty word games. Ael, Jessie, and Karin are missing, and it looks like they put up a fight. See if you can locate them on sensors."

There was a pause, and then Kristian sent back a reply. "We're picking up lifesigns that correspond with Vulcan, Romulan-human, and Klingon-human patterns," he confirmed. "But they're coming from deep within the mountain, and we can't seem to get a transporter lock. Something in the stone, I'd guess."

"How far from my current position?" he asked, thinking fast.

"About a kilometer north-west, at a vertical angle of thirty-seven degrees. That'd make about two levels up. Do you need backup?"

There was an amused snort from the comm speaker, and a voice on the bridge said, "Are you kidding? _Him_, need backup for _her_? Nah, I'm sure he can handle it."

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Damian smiled slightly. "Way to be optimistic, Cobalt."

"My pleasure. What about weapons?"

"A phaser might be nice, but it would take too long to get outside the mountain, within beam-in range. I'll be fine," he decided.

"Understood and agreed with," Kristian responded. "_Yel'Hal-tor_ out."

Damian closed his communicator and turned his smoldering gaze in the direction Kristian had indicated. _Once I get my hands on you, you'll be sorry you ever messed with us,_ he thought in their direction. _Here's looking at you, kids._

1 Ancient Vulcan sword, very hard to find outside of museums


	16. Rescue and Epilogue

**Chapter Sixteen - Rescue**

Karin regained consciousness not long after Allison was brought to the room. "Urgh...someone get the number of that shuttle," she muttered as the world swam into focus.

Allison's face popped into view above her. "About time you woke up," she commented. "What happened?"

"I think we were attacked...Jessie tried to knock one of them out with a vase, but they stunned her."

"Yeah, looks like they got you too, then. Do you have your communicator?"

Karin quickly searched her belt. "No. They must have confiscated it." Sitting up, she noticed the eerily-silent Shal guards for the first time, and frowned. "What are they...?"

"It seems, my Padawan, that we are being used as hostages." To further demonstrate her point, she raised an eyebrow. _Just hush. They think I'm a normal, unemotional Vulcan. Don't give them any reason to think otherwise._ The mental contact was not blocked by the stone of the mountain, so Karin heard it clearly and nodded. _Oh yes, and they don't know Damian's around here somewhere. Somehow, he wasn't here when they struck, and I can't contact him so we'll just have to wait, and pretend that there were only three of us. Clear?_

_...clear as mud,_ Karin replied. _But I'll do whatever you ask._

_Might as well practice your Jedi mental abilities,_ Allison sent back, as well as a mental picture of Jessie, who was still unconscious on the floor. _See if she's injured in any way, and wake her up if you deem it safe._

_Yes, cap'n!_ Moving quickly and silently, Karin assessed the half-Klingon's condition, as any good nurse would do. Determining that the Security Chief was not injured, she reached out a Force tendril and gave the Klingon's Force-presence a nudge. _Wakey-wakey, Captain says it's time to get up!_ she announced cheerily.

Jessie's eyes opened, and she glared up at the half-Romulan. "I hate you morning people."

Allison lifted a finger to her lips, signaling that Jessie should be quiet. "bIjatlh 'e' yImev(1)," she said quietly. "qaqeS, lIHIvlaH(2)."

Jessie nodded, lowering her voice. "qaStaH nuq?(3)"

Allison switched accents from Klingon to Vulcan, but kept her voice quiet. "Ma so-resh ri lof il utvau hi lau-ma tehrai(4). Aifa-veh kum-tor etwel(5)." She changed from Vulcan to Rihanha. "Deletham waenhu(6). Lloann dhat docgae(7). Hwi dhat fraeta lloannher, ssuaj?(8)"

"jIyaj(9)!" Jessie replied.

"Mekha(10)," Allison said, satisfied.

One of the Shal guards frowned at the exchange, clearly unsettled that they weren't speaking Standard. "No talking," he decided, waving his phaser threateningly at them. Of course, none of them felt threatened in the least bit, nor did the new rule disturb them.

Allison half-closed her eyes, and reached out through the Force. _He may be able to stop us from talking audibly, but telepathic communication is always a plus,_ shs sent to Karin, and attempted to send to Jessie. The half-Klingon frowned slightly, the message obviously slightly muted. Still, she made a quick thumbs-up to indicate that she'd heard a little of it.

With a quick glance to the Shal guard, who was watching them, Jessie turned her back toward the alien soldier. She pointed to Karin and Allison, then touched the right side of her forehead with her right-hand fingertips, and then put both hands together, index fingers raised, and circled them toward herself and around each other, palms facing out.(11)

Karin frowned in confusion, but Allison's right hand formed a fist and shook it up and down. _She's asking if we know sign,_ Allison sent to Karin. _It's American Sign Language - I learned some back when I was ten years old, in Girl Scouts back home, and I've learned more since my transition to the _Enterprise_. Since she's psi-null and you don't know sign, I'll act as interpreter._ She signed to Jessie basically what she'd sent to Karin.

'If they don't know what we're doing, they can't punish us for talking,' Jessie agreed. 'What's the plan, Captain?'

Allison signed to Jessie first, then sent Karin the message telepathically. 'Now, we wait. Damian is smart, he will find out where we are.'

---------

At that very moment, Damian was on his way up to their level. With the Gr'loev knife secured in his belt, he moved silently and swifty through the stone hallway. He didn't see a single Krleiuvan, which he thought rather odd. Until, of course, he ran around a corner and straight into a group of Shal.

The aliens stared at Damian. Damian stared at the aliens. For a single moment, time seemed to freeze in place. One of the Shal began to reach for his phaser.

Damian's conscious mind seemed to evaporate, and he snapped into action. He slapped away the phaser and swpt the first Shal's legs out from underneath him, then spun around and backhanded another in the face. He kicked out at the third's vulnerable tail joints, causing the alien to briefly shriek in agony as its spine was pulverized.

As the last Krleiuvan dropped to the cold stone floor, writhing in agony, Damian jerked out of a green haze and blinked in confusion at the near-carnage. _Did I do that?_ he wondered, and noticed that orange blood was indeed splattered on his boots. The Gr'loev knife was still hooked onto his belt, and it was unstained. He had done it with his bare hands.

Suddenly, he grinned. _I knew all that martial arts training would pay off! Thank you, Ael!_

And with that, he snatched up a fallen phaser and kicked down the door.

---------

Allison, Karin, and Jessie were still in discussion when the door abruptly divorced itself from the hinges and flew across the room, smashing into a million shards on the opposite wall. The Shal guards barely got time to shout out in surprise when a red-clad figure blew like a whirlwind into the room, and blue bursts of light shot out from it. Each burst, recognizable as phaser stun fire, struck a Shal and sent him or her to the floor. Approximately fifteen seconds later, it was all over.

Damian grinned at them. "No one invited me to the party," he offered as explanation. Before he could say anything else, he was nearly tackled by his Bondmate.

"About time you showed up," she purred. "Where were you?"

"Shopping." He seperated from her slightly and unhooked the Gr'loev from his belt, then presented it to her. "For you, fair maiden," he said, smiling.

She grabbed it from him and studied it for a moment, then looked up. Her eyes narrowed as she glanced over his shoulder. "Duck," she said softly, then threw it at his head.

He jerked out of the way, and a strangled cry came from behind him. He whirled around just in time to see one of the Shal slump to the ground, phaser clattering to the ground. The jeweled knife protruded from its throat, and its eyes faded gray in death.

Allison walked over and picked up the phaser. "Set to kill," she announced. "He was aiming it at your back. Evidently you didn't get them all during your dramatic entrance." Moving quickly, Jessie and Karin were already searching the guards for their confiscated communicators. Allison snatched up a fallen key, and turned to the bound Tor next to the wall. "Well, that went easier than expected," she commented as she unlatched the handcuffs, and then pulled the strap off the Tor's muzzle.

a'Mro flexed her arms for a moment. "My clan is in debt to you," she said, her musical voice hushed in awe. "We are forever your servants." Her crest flickered in a wave-like motion, shimmering in the light. "Whatever you ask, it shall be done."

Allison looked down at the kneeling Tor woman, and gently touched her shoulder. a'Mro, correctly interpreting the gesture, rose and looked up at the Vulcan's face. "a'Mro, daughter of the Tor, your pledge is recognized and accepted. However, all I wish is peace on Krleiuv. Convince your leaders to pardon the Shal. That will be enough for me."

a'Mro hesitated, and then ducked her head gracefully. "It will be as you say."

---------

Chief Archyx faced the landing party, arms behind his back, and head bent low. "Captain Danks, my deepest apologies to you and your colleages. We should not have dragged you down with our petty matters, nor should the Tor have reacted so violently. Your intervention has revealed our deepest flaws of mistrust, and we are forever in your debt."

"Chief Archyx, your apologies have been accepted," Allison said. "The Federation does not and will not blame you for being what you are. Perhaps we shall meet again someday, under much better circumstances."

"Perhaps." The Tor raised his head, and ebony eyes focused on her. "Captain Allison L. Danks, Keeper of the sacred Gr'loev, Bringer of Peace, Savior of all Krleiuv, I and all of my people - Tor AND Shal - bid you farewell."

Allison and Damian raised their hands and saluted in the Vulcan manner. Karin placed her right fist over her heart; a Rihannsu salute. Jessie slapped her chest with her fist and then threw it outwards; a Klingon salute. Three worlds, three farewells. Vulcan, Romulan, Klingon. All united.

And then the transporter effect took hold and the four officers dematerialized, leaving behind the planet of Krleiuv.

**Epilogue**

"_And thus, Krleiuv was saved from its own stubbornness. StarFleet wasn't too pleased with my report, but at least I didn't get in trouble this time. Of course, there will come a day where that will not be true."_

Allison switched off the log recorder. A voice behind her laughed, "Are you always that serious when you record these little things?"

She turned around and playfully shoved Damian backwards onto their bed. "If that's what you think, then yes," she said.

"Hey, remind me why I love you, again."

"If you insist." Grinning, she joined him on the bed.

- - - - - - - -

**Translations**

(1)Klingon: "Be silent/Stop speaking/Shut up!"

(2)Klingon: "I advise you, they can attack you."

(3)Klingon: "What's happening?"

(4)Golic Vulcan: "Madness has no purpose or reason, but it may have a goal."

(5)Golic Vulcan: "They capture(d) us."

(6)Rihanha (Romulan): "Damian disappeared."

(7)Rihanha: "They don't know."

(8)Rihanha: "Don't tell them, understand?"

(9)Klingon: "I understand!"

(10)Rihanha: "Good."

(11)American Sign Language: "Do you know sign?"


End file.
